Dark Memories
by diabolusfetura
Summary: After her memories are shattered, Aingeal is lead to the Carpathian mountains by visions of intriguing strangers. Will she be able to meld the shards of her mind and save the Carpathians-or will her Dark Memories consume her? Reviews Appreciated! The Author has chosen to discontinue this story.
1. Chapter 1

**1**

A tear rolled coolly down her face; as it froze, she brushed it away to fall to the earth like a glistening jewel. She knew she should regulate her body temperature properly but like every other piece of information whose source she was unable to remember, she discarded it. Something had happened to fragment her mind. Every time she strained for the event in her chaotic memories, though, another vision claimed her. Visions she hoped and dreaded might be proven true.

She looked around her and immediately her mind was not her own. Instead it was that of another, a man who looked upon this same area not long ago.

_A red haired woman stood next to him, her stomach distended with the burden of a child. They had flown as near to the inn as he dared with their enemies so prominent in the area and one at the inn itself. Still, his lifemate's labor pains were increasing and he wished to whisk her away to the cave of healing where he could protect her and his child, rather than attend a party with so many unattached males and an unknown relative._

_"Shea, this woman can wait another day…."_

"Shea and Jacques." she whispered the names to herself like talismans. She secretly drew courage from the pair who battled an insanity not unlike her own every day and won. As Jacques had "told" her, she was near the inn and would soon come into contact with the innkeepers Mirko and Slavica and their daughter Angelina. So how was she to explain to them how she knew the people in this area intimately yet could not recall her name, birth date, or any other pertinent information about herself? As always she decided to wing it. She might consider herself mad but she knew she had an excellent mind that worked best when she could get a feel for the situation. Indeed, she did not know it, but in addition to her visions she simply understood what those around her needed and she gave it without thought to keep them happy. In a few moments, before she had a chance to change her mind, she stood on the welcome mat before the door to the inn. She knocked the snow from her shoes and proceeded to enter the warm and glowing entranceway.

_Tiny blue eyes. Jewels in a wolf pendant and a single dance._

This was indeed the site of the party she still half hoped had never occurred. She unwound the scarf from around her neck and reluctantly trudged over to the bar where Slavica talked good-naturedly with one of the lodgers. She waited apprehensively for the woman to notice her as she sat on one of the stools and ran her hand over what appeared to be hand carved and polished wood bar. Finally, Slavica came to tend the youth who struck her as fearful, not so much for herself but those around her.

"Can I get you something, Miss?" Slavica smiled at the young woman.

The girl smiled back, instantly lighting up her face with beauty hidden by inner shadows only moments before.

"No thank you, ma'am." she replied back in the language of the area which Slavica had spoken in.

"Are you from the states?" Slavica switched to English, "I confused you for a moment with a local you look so much like us."

"Yes, ma'am, I was raised in the U.S. but I was born here in the Carpathian mountains. Actually, I was wondering if you might recognize me. I seem to have some memories of this place and I thought I may have been here with my mother as a child." _Please, let that be true._

"I do not know you as any babe I have seen before but perhaps your mother's name would help me to remember you."

"That's alright. I'm an exact copy of her really and I doubt her name would do you anymore good in remembering her than my appearance does."

A shadow of suspicion slid across the older woman's face. The younger lady immediately changed the subject.

"Um, it would be a great help to me if you could rent me a room, though. I mean, I know it's late, but…"

Slavica laughed. "Dear, this is not late for an innkeeper. Even if Branislav were not here to talk my ears off I would be here for hours more still."

"It's nearly dawn, though?"

"I have many friends who prefer the night time as they do much business with your U.S. and they come by often to visit with me. I stay awake in order to talk with them."

The young woman's breath suddenly refused to enter her lungs.

_Vampires. Oh God, I really am a…a…_

The child certainly seemed odd to Slavica and she would tell Mikhail of her presence. She also seemed genuinely sad and as a tear made its way down her cheek unknown, Slavica wrapped the child in her arms. The young woman wept inside. She had accepted her damnation long before but now her secret courage, the seemingly wonderful people of her visions, evaporated. Vampires could not truly be so wonderful as she had imagined these people even if they turned out not to be trickeries of the mind. Startling green eyes flickered in her mind. She shut down. She simply could not think of those eyes anymore, the most devastating loss unwittingly caused by Slavica's revelation.

"Come, child. As you have said it is late and you should be in bed." Slavica switched fluidly back to her language. "Branislav, I am certain I will see you tomorrow."

"I will…stop, ehh, tomorrow. Yes?" Branislav replied in English like a small child showing off a new talent.

The young lady commended him with a rather watery smile. "That was very good."

"I will…see you later." He replied beaming and left the inn.

Slavica turned to the child. "What is troubling you?"

She smiled and wiped away the tear. "I suppose I just thought I would find family or at least someone who knew me. I've been alone for all of the time that I remember."

"Is there time that you do not remember?" Slavica asked, extreme concern written on her face now.

"No. I mean, I just meant since I was a child."

"You are yet a child, though."

"I'm seventeen." A sudden wave of memory crashed upon her. "My mother was raped and I'm the product of that. So, I didn't have a chance at parents who would love and want me. I have lived alone for some time." She turned untamed and sorrow filled yellow eyes upon the older woman.

"Well, you are still a young thing and it is never too late to find love, especially in your homeland, in a nice warm bed, with a cup of hot chocolate." The innkeeper carefully steered her charge towards the stairs and into one of her many rooms. As soon as the wooden door snicked shut behind Slavica, the young woman felt another mind pushing against her mental defenses. Instinctively, she knew another of her kind must be in the area. She paced around her newly acquired room even as Slavica called out a greeting from the top of the stairs.

"Mikhail! It is good to see you again."

"It makes me glad, as well, to visit with good friends. Are you well?"

The voices seemed to go farther away until all she could hear was an occasional laugh. Inside, she roiled with uncertainty. The old woman claimed the vampire as a friend but she remembered him as being referred to as Prince in one of her chaotic and fleeting visions. She simply would not leave the old woman to be sucked dry by the Prince of Vampires. A dagger was the only weapon she had and she pulled it from the scabbard underneath her coat and walked to the door. She had often thought of ridding the world of herself with that very knife. Now, it might be put to use in saving a life. Gently, she opened the door and crawled to the stairs leading back to the entranceway. The voices were still barely discernable. She strained her hearing and it was like the volume suddenly turned up full blast. She thought the two downstairs might be shouting in her ears but she wasn't willing to risk being unable to hear at all to tone it down. It was obvious they were talking about her.

"I am unsure if she is part of the vampire hunting society." said Slavica once again conversing in her native tongue.

"Still, it is better to be safe especially when something appears harmless."

"Got that right! Stupid, harmless old granny routine; knows all about the vampires!" she muttered to herself.

_Gregori_ Mikhail called to his second in command _What do you think of this girl?_

Gregori sent a mental image of her crawling back to her door with knife in hand. _She talks of vampires to herself and suspects Slavica of consorting with the undead._

_I am coming to talk to her myself. Make sure nothing rash happens._

_Am I preventing myself or the girl from behaving rashly?_

_I think there is something to be said for the former, silent Gregori._

_Blame your daughter. _He severed the connection to his prince and followed the girl back inside her room.

Her head pounded and fragmented, dangerously close to tipping into another vision. She pressed her forehead hard into the door to try and keep the pieces of her mind together. Pictures of caves full of waterfalls and jewels floated through her mind but no one scene succeeded in dragging her into its clutches. She turned, once she was under control and came face to chest with a man who towered over her. Looking up she slashed out with the knife on instinct upon realizing the healer Gregori stood before her with his piercing silver eyes fully focused on her like prey. He knocked the unprepared knife from her hands, easily embedding it in the door and wrapping his hand around her throat. He slit her wrist on the part of the blade still protruding from the door. Her eyes instantly flashed a dangerous combination of blue and red as he tried to bring her wrist to his mouth. She wanted to forever separate his soul from his body but before she could react visions of Savannah with a tear sodden face danced before her eyes, obscuring her sight of reality. For the first time, she did not fight the visions beating at her perception. Instead, she allowed them to sweep her and Gregori along with the current.

_Gregori was no longer in a well lit room but in a cave lit by flickering candle light; once again immersed in the body of a wounded warrior as his lifemate and another female were forced to battle the unclean nosferatu. All at once, the vision was gone and he was simply in a dark void; no colors, no emotion, no Savannah. The beast inside him thrashed at its bonds and he could not recall why it must at all times be contained._

He was not alone in a personal hell, however. Jagged edges of memory tore at her head. She had seen this before, had separated lifemates before with a sea of madness.

"NO!!!" she screamed in her head, in Gregori's mind, out loud, it didn't matter. She struggled to pull them both from her labyrinthine mind just as Mikhail flung open the door, sending her head first into the wall with a resounding crack.

_Her mind disconnected from her body, trapped in Gregori's nightmare. He was even closer to madness than she, cut off from his lifemate as he was. She stumbled forward to him, needing to help him. She had never been able to bear another's suffering; even if the man had attacked her. When she was close enough to touch him she hesitated, remembering another situation very similar to the one she was stuck in now. Gregori and the dark void he resided in started to fade from her sight; she was being pulled into another vision. Her hand shot out to grasp the front of Gregori's shirt just above his heart. His swift and violent reaction was lost as they were wrenched into her vision of the past._

_She stood clutching Gregori's shirt front, watching herself and another called Arturo converse._

_"You are my lifemate, _csitri."_ He calmly approached the cornered looking teen. They were in the mountains, in the woods, and he backed her into a tree. She stuck a hand out to hold him back from her._

_"You don't know that, you don't know me!" she reasoned desperately._

_"With your hand on my heart like this," he pulled her hand up over his heartbeat, "I see colors, I feel your fear of me and the hatred of those hunting you."_

_"You may feel you know this but, please, listen to me. I'm not sure how, but I am sure I am not the one for you."_

_Anger flashed in Arturo's eyes, quickly replaced by a smile. "Aingeal, if it were not so I would be unable to claim you. So know this:_

_You are my lifemate.  
I claim you as my lifemate.  
I belong to you.  
I offer my life for you…"_

_She writhed, clawed, and bit in an attempt to get away from the ritual words the man perverted by speaking to one other than his true lifemate. In her head, another female voice screamed along with her, growing weaker as the man continued to speak the ritual words, holding her pinned against the tree._

"_You are my lifemate, bound to me for eternity and always in my care."_

_The screaming in her head ceased. Arturo dropped his hands from her body, backing away as if she had staggered him with a blow to the heart._

_"You're lifemate…I'm sorry" she tried to comfort the man. He was beyond comfort, beyond emotion, and his eyes glinted an evil red as his soul escaped to follow his lifemate. What stood before her was no man, no Carpathian, but a beast set loose after centuries in confinement._

_Gregori had once again gained control of himself as emotions and colors, though not as powerful as he had before, poured into his starving mind. He did not trust his tenuous hold on sanity and so stood absolutely still with the girl's hand over his heart and watched the vision play out. The vampire slashed at the child and she reacted on instinct, crippling his open mind with a mental blow. The vision dissolved and they once more returned to a secret chamber hidden in the girl's mind. This time, instead of a dark and endless void, they stood at the base of a waterfall as it crashed down and flowed on either side of the giant stone they stood on top of. Gregori had walked in many minds, many of them dark and twisted, and though the young girl was fractured, she was not evil. That was made even more evident by the fact she was attempting to hold him together even as she was in tatters. _

_"I am going to fall down." The scenery around them wavered as her mental self began to succumb to exhaustion. _

_Gregori pulled the teenager to himself, making sure to keep her palm pressed firmly over his heartbeat. "Be strong, little one. You are keeping us both connected to the land of the living."_

_"I am not your lifemate," She jerked away from him impulsively. Her hand managed to break contact with him for just a moment before he snatched it back. She felt the monster inside of him clearly for those few seconds._

_Gregori waited a moment until he was in complete control to continue. "You do not have to worry about a repeat of such a scene as long as you are with me. I have already found and claimed my lifemate."_

_Aingeal pressed her forehead into his chest and allowed him to support her. "Savannah." The name shimmered in the air between them._

_"Yes, Savannah... I am curious, child, how it is you come to know my people. Are your visions sometimes not of events in your own past?"_

_Her head moved side to side almost imperceptibly against his chest. "I have never seen myself before. In fact I do not even have memories at all, besides the half glimpses I get of the life of your people." She stopped a moment before continuing, lowering her voice as if confessing a sin. "Sometimes I see things I know haven't happened yet." She held her breath as if waiting for his condemnation._

_"If you truly can do such a thing then it is a great gift indeed."_

_She released her held breath and stepped back to look him in the eye. "I'm sorry, for everything. The good news is we're not trapped in a vision. So, as soon as I regain consciousness I should be able to get us out."_

_Gregori nodded as if being trapped in the mind of a crazy lady did not bother him in the least. _

_"There are very few memories I have access to at any one time but there is one I could share with you if it would help."_

_Gregori sensed her elation at being able to offer him some solace. He gave a small bow in assent. The scenery rippled until they stood inside the inn next to Slavica, overlooking a crib. Inside, two dark haired infants slept._

_"Sometimes they're called Carmen and Camellia, other times Daria and Ileana." she turned to him with a smile. "Either way, they are beautiful."_

_Slavica walked out of the room and left Aingeal and Gregori to stare down at his sleeping children who had yet to be born._

_"I stay here for hours at a time when…" She faltered._

_Gregori finished for her. "When you can no longer bear a life in which you remember nothing but pain. Our people can help you, for it is clear you are one at least partially of our race." Aingeal's eyes flashed their blue gaze to his face and back to the children sleeping soundly before them. "Our race cherishes its females and children. You can find a family to stay with, to love you, until you grow of age and your lifemate claims you. A lifemate would treasure you above life itself."_

_Green eyes flashed from every shadow in the room. "I would love to belong somewhere. However, I could never risk another incident like what happened to Arturo and his true lifemate."_

_"You are afraid no one can truly love you."_

_Streaks of yellow shot through her blue eyes, combining to create an eery green glow. "I am truthful enough to admit I do not expect acceptance from anyone and wise enough not to delude myself with dreams of love."_

_"They say love makes fools of us all. May I ask why you chose to come to the Carpathian mountains if not to seek out your kin? That must have been your plan."_

_Glowering yellow eyes assaulted him. "It's all too real!" she shouted, waking the extrasensory sensitive babes. "Yeah, it was wonderful to dream of fitting in with you people when I thought I would have to kill myself to protect those around me. But now you are all real, not figments of my imagination, and in reality I'm dangerous and it's only a matter of time before I am inexorably shunned. Dreams can only make scars on your heart when they're ripped from your grasp."_

_Slavica and Angelina came in to tend the twins, giving Aingeal an excuse to turn her eyes from Gregori's pity filled gaze. Two sets of eyes met hers, one silver pair one blue. Soon the eyes were once again half closed with sleep. After they were replaced in the cribs, Aingeal reached out to stroke the hair of the little blue eyed girl._

_Gregori reached out to touch his precious daughter. "What could have happened in so short a life to steal your hope?"_

_Tears of frustration glittered in her eyes as she whispered her response. "I don't know. I couldn't even remember my name."_

_They waited there for hours, just touching and entertaining the children. Finally, Aingeal sensed others in her mind searching for Gregori._

_"They're here." Gregori replaced his daughter in the crib at Aingeal's words. "Gregori, before you leave I want you to know something."_

_"What is it, little one?"_

_"All of this is only what _may _happen, not what _will _happen. The girls are not always there when I have a vision, so keep them safe."_

_Francesca and Shea stepped out of nothing and into the room. "Come with us," requested Gregori._

_"I'll show you how to get out." Aingeal tried to lighten the mood, "After all, I can't let you go all snarley and attack these ladies."_

_As Aingeal turned to lead them back to their lives, Shea cast an amused glance at the small hand pressed over Gregori's heart._

_Gregori grinned at the redhead. "She is simply helping me to overcome my slight addiction to Savannah. I believe it resembles the human nicotine patch."_

_Shea followed behind the others. "Gone into withdrawals already, eh?"_

_Gregori snorted derisively. "I would not, had you been faster in executing my rescue."_

_"You know, there are other damsels in distress as well, such as Dominic, who drains us with his need of healing."_

_"Dominic?" asked Aingeal interestedly as she lead the group to the forest surrounding the inn._

_"He's another male of our race. One of Dragonseeker blood." Francesca answered the youth._

_Gregori responded to the deeper meaning behind Aingeal's statement. "You know intimate details about our people yet you have not seen Dominic?"_

_"I don't think I could have had a vision of every one of you."_

_"A vision?" inquired Francesca._

_Shea recognized the girl's reluctance to discuss the topic, so she changed the conversation. "Do you have a faster way out of here or are we going to be stumbling through another maze for a couple hours?"_

_"There's a portal straight to the outside world just inside the forest." Once to the edge of the woods, Aingeal pushed at the air as if opening a door. Through it the group could see Aingeal's room at the inn._

Shea, Francesca, _Gregori communicated in the way of his people. _The girl thinks to stay trapped here.

No!_ gasped Francesca, whose own adopted daughter Skyler had retreated into her mind after abhorrent abuse by a former father. The group immediately converged on Aingeal. She tore her hand from Gregori and spun away farther into the forest. Gregori went rigid as the women ran after the teen. Francesca and Shea tried to guide the girl back to the doorway but somehow, she always managed to twist away from the direction they forced her in. Finally, Francesca put on an extra burst of speed and wrapped her arms around the child who reminded her so much of the Skyler she had saved years before._

_"Leave me alone, Francesca!" she shouted at the woman pinning her to the ground. Shea leaned down to the girl, brushing fingers through her hair in an attempt to end the struggling. _

_"How do you know her name?" She inquired softly._

_A well of anger broke inside of Aingeal, causing her to scream and thrash even more. "I'M A FREAK, OKAY! I see the pasts and futures of complete strangers when I can't recall anything about myself but my first name! And even that was stolen from a VISION!"_

_Shea removed her hand from Aingeal's brow. "Are you trying to scare me with this revelation?" The girl quieted some at Shea's response. "Everyone, human and Carpathian alike, is granted with unique gifts. It is each individual's sole responsibility to embrace them in order to help those around him or her. You cannot do so if you cower in a fantasyland."_

_"I can't keep on going alone without even knowing who I am."_

_"You must. You are of Carpathian blood and your other half is out there, suffering alone as you are. Suffering as all males do without a lifemate, as Jacques, Gabriel, and Gregori…"_

_Aingeal interrupted Shea with renewed struggling. "Gregori! He's cut off from Savannah in here and without my hand he cannot feel emotion or see color. You have to save him!" Francesca's grip loosened and Aingeal shot away from the two women. "Go! Just leave me here!"_

_A gap opened in the trees and Aingeal disappeared into another corner of her mind._

Gregori? _Francesca called out apprehensively. Her only response was a rumbling growl. Her eyes widened and both she and Shea set off at a dash to aid Gregori. At the edge of the forest Gregori slid to the brink of his control. He believed Savannah dead and, without the aid of the dawn, he could not join her without leaving a twisted being behind. Shea watched as her friend paced like a dangerous jungle predator. They needed to get him back _now _before he lost his will to continue._

_Shea mentally shouted to Francesca. _Distract him!

_"Gregori," his eyes darted up to lock onto her gaze, "Savannah is yet in the land of the living. She has not passed on and so you must hold out until you can make it back to her." As she talked, Gregori crept forward inch by inch, clearly fighting himself._

Now! _Shea lunged forward with Francesca to force Gregori through the portal. He raked at their arms as all three tumbled forward, back into reality. _


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note: A reader asked me if Gregori was Aingeal's father. No, he is not her biological father but he has become somewhat attached to her and seems to have emotionally adopted her. Her biological parents will be introduced in this chapter, so, enjoy! And, as always, let me know what you think!**

**2**

Savannah's hands ran through Gregori's hair. "I know you are awake now. You might as well open your eyes."

Gregori peeked at her with one eye. "You might stop if I do not continue to appear grievously wounded."

"Or I might poke you in the eyeball if you do not obey your lifemate this instant."

Gregori shot up to capture her smiling lips with his. He grasped her hips with his hands and brought them up to span her ribcage.

Savannah pulled back from Gregori to whisper in his ear. "We have company. I don't think Dominic would enjoy waking up to find us."

Gregori groaned and removed his hands from her. "It would be his own fault. He should not still be here."

"You know the burns on his body refuse to heal normally," Savannah shoved him off his knees and onto his butt. "He needs the soil enhanced by Syndil to stave off continued damage from the mage's spell."

Gregori took a moment to get himself under control. After their extended separation he desperately needed to feel her and make sure she was really there with him.

"Where is the girl?"

"My father thought it best to leave her at the inn where she could be monitored at all times." She reached out to link her hand with her lifemate's. "What happened? Francesca and Shea said you were somehow trapped in the girl Aingeal's mind and that it was unlike anything they had ever seen before."

"Her mind is damaged; twisted by events she has very little memory of and wracked with visions she can't control." He reached out to place his hand on Savannah's slightly rounded stomach. "She showed me our daughters. They are going to be beautiful and I will never be able to sleep again for worrying over them."

"I know you are anxious about the girl. Francesca believes Skyler will be able to connect with her, show her how her life could be even with so dark a past behind her."

"And Dmitri?" inquired Gregori.

"He will go with young Skyler. He could not sit by and allow another to retreat from the world as she did."

"We should go and offer our services."

Savannah stood up and sashayed away from him. "I believe we should give Skyler a chance to connect with the girl alone. Besides, I am in need of my lifemate." She glanced at him suggestively over her shoulder.

Gregori emitted a low growl in his throat and streaked after Savannah to their home.

* * *

"Skyler?" Francesca asked to the house in general. 

"I'm coming!" called Skyler from her bedroom at the top of the stairs. Tamara was sleeping and Skyler had taken the opportunity to reread Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame for the hundredth time. The story always seemed to relax her no matter how many times she read the story. She replaced her marker in the book and ran down to see Francesca. Immediately, she was distracted by deep blue eyes staring at her from the shadows. She wrenched her gaze from Dimitri to glance worriedly at her guardians Gabriel and Francesca.

"What's going on, Francesca? Is someone hurt?"

_Gabriel,_ Francesca reprimanded her lifemate, _Stop posturing. You're frightening Skyler._

Gabriel, who had been silently glowering at Dimitri since he entered, uncrossed his arms and smiled at his daughter. "Everyone is fine, little one. However, there is a girl at the inn we would like you to talk to."

Francesca wrapped an arm around her daughter to offer support. Self doubt always seemed to cloud the girl's mind whenever her lifemate was near.

"She's around your age and in trouble. She refuses to emerge from her own mind because she half believes we're vampires, even though she is at least partially Carpathian herself."

"What can I do?" Skyler asked apprehensively.

"Apparently she is very gifted and has been having visions of all of us. For this reason, she fears our rejection above all else. We became a safe haven in a world that rejected her. So, we thought you might be able to show her how her life could be; show her the friendship she could have if she's brave enough to seek it."

She wanted to help. If she could do what Francesca suggested then it would only prove she was moving closer to how Francesca saw her and farther away from the unworthy being her father had convinced her she was.

_Do you really think I can do this? _Skyler asked her parents.

_Absolutely,_ they answered without hesitation.

A hand brushed against her face and she looked to the corner where Dimitri stood, as immobile as ever.

Skyler's heart fluttered. "Are you coming with us?"

"Yes, I would never allow another to endure alone as you have had to." His blue eyes were filled with sorrow at the thought of the young lifemate he was unable to protect. No one but Skyler seemed to notice.

"I will stay with Tamara," announced Gabriel as the women headed to the door, flanked by Dimitri.

Dimitri nodded in acknowledgement. Gabriel may not approve of Dimitri as his daughter's lifemate but he wanted her to be happy. They had not returned to France precisely for that reason. They had stayed under the cover of having a birthday party that Josef, Josh, and the adults could all attend, but their main reason was to allow Skyler the time to accept her lifemate.

Skyler stopped to remove her coat from the peg next to the door. Dimitri was there first, holding out the garment for her to put on. She thought about refusing but, seeing Gabriel looking on as if waiting for a chance to banish Dimitri, she shrugged into the coat. Dimitri's hands brushed up both of her arms, making them tingle as she fumbled with buttoning the jacket.

Soon they were out in the snow. The below freezing temperatures helped to cool the heat Dimitri's gaze was causing in Skyler. She had no idea what she was doing to him, her mind contemplating his facial features and long hair. She thought him "cute" but wished he would cut his hair so she could see more of his masculine face. Dimitri smiled with inner triumph, he could do that one small thing for his lifemate. Francesca watched him surreptitiously, surprised by the change a smile wrought upon his face. For a moment he was not the solitary hunter-nor the shy boy he had once been described as-but some mixture of the two. It was a brief glance of a man who might see to her daughter's happiness as well as her safety.

It took a while before they made it to the inn. The ground was treacherous and they had to go slow for Skyler's sake. Even so, she slipped once during the journey and Dimitri had to catch her to keep her from falling face first into a snow drift.

Once inside the door, they were immediately waved farther in by Slavica. "The girl continues to lay upstairs as if dead."

"We hope to change that," replied Francesca, kissing Slavica on the cheek in greeting. "We believe Skyler can convince her to come back into the world."

"Follow me and I will unlock the door for you."

As Slavica opened the door, all three gasped at the sight of the young girl lying on the bed with a barely discernable heartbeat. Lack of nutrition and proper rest showed in her even more with her spirit locked away in her mind. If they were unable to draw her out, she would not last much longer. So far, any attempts to force her compliance to sleep or eat had failed; her mind was too far withdrawn.

Skyler, however, gasped for an entirely different reason. She did not know where but she had seen the girl before.

"Francesca," Skyler turned to her guardian breathlessly, "Her name, it's Aingeal isn't it?"

"How did you know that, _cara_? I didn't tell you."

Skyler pressed her fingertips against her eyelids until she saw little spots of color. "I'm not sure. I remembered…something, just for a moment but it's gone now."

Francesca conveyed her worry to her lifemate. There was only a single portion of Skyler's life that she could not remember, the time she and her mother had been trapped with her vampiric father Razvan. Anything connected to that time of her life deserved extreme caution. Francesca was ready to whisk her daughter from the room when Aingeal spoke.

"Leave it, Skyler, or he'll be mad at you." Even barely whispered, everyone heard her words. It was clear she was still in her head, talking as if she were asleep.

Skyler stepped forward, "Who'll be mad?"

Even with her enhanced hearing, Skyler had to step closer to hear the reply. "Razvan."

It could not have been more chaotic had someone set off an explosion. Francesca and Dimitri pulled Skyler away from Aingeal, forcing her back just far enough for Dimitri to insert himself in between the two girls. He looked as if he might attack the girl lying so helpless on the bed.

"Stop it!" screamed Skyler.

Francesca stepped forward and pulled Aingeal's shirt up just enough to reveal the flesh above her left hip. "She does not bear the Dragonseeker mark, which makes her connection to Razvan all the more suspicious."

"That's not her fault. How could she have chosen to be connected to him when she's my age? It's like saying _I _chose to be his daughter."

"Love, no one is blaming you. You were a babe," soothed Francesca.

"So was she, though. She warned me not to help her because Razvan would be angry. We must have been trapped with him together when we were small."

"I will not allow this to continue." Dimitri entered the conversation. "Whether it is a conscious act on her part or not, entering her mind might be a trap. She has very little memory and could have been sent out by Razvan as part of his plot to destroy our people."

Skyler turned to him, eyes filled with tears of frustration. "All of you expect so much from me. Why can't you trust me?"

Dimitri did trust her; he just did not trust anyone else. His eyes bored into hers. Every second he stood between Skyler and her task, he lost the progress he had fought so hard for with her. She still did not accept him as her lifemate but she was becoming accustomed to his presence; that would be lost if he insisted much more.

He shifted almost imperceptibly, allowing her to return to the bedside. Skyler placed her palm on the girl's unnaturally cool forehead.

"I cannot go with you. She will not allow it after I have tried to force her back into the world." Francesca connected them with a hand on Skyler's shoulder at the forlorn look on her face, "I will be here to help you back if you should need me."

Dimitri firmly took Skyler's right hand in his left; he would keep her anchored as well. He held his breath as his lifemate entered Aingeal's mind.

_Aingeal shivered. Physical contact with another always heightened the intensity of her visions. She glanced up to smile at Skyler as she appeared beside her. They were in a cave surrounded by towers of ice and swirling spheres of magic. _

_"Do you feel the power in here?" Aingeal inquired of Skyler._

_"Where are we?"_

_Aingeal extended her hand to touch the magic she saw shimmering in the air. As soon as she touched it she tried to withdraw her hand but it was stuck. Skyler realized something was wrong and tried to remove Aingeal's hand from the glowing ribbon. They both began to grow younger as they struggled, becoming a part of the vision instead of observers. _

_"Leave it, Skyler, or he'll be mad at you." Aingeal yanked her bleeding wrist from Skyler's grasp. "I don't know how you can stand that all of the time."_

_Skyler shook and absentmindedly rubbed at her tiny wrist at the mention of Razvan's daily feedings. "It keeps him from hurting mommy."_

_"We need to leave, Skyler."_

_The younger child began to cry. "I can't go without my mommy, Aingeal. What about your mommy?"_

_"Maris…doesn't want to come with me. I know all of her spells, though. I can get us out of here." Aingeal would never reveal to anyone exactly how Maris had "taught" her the spells. Maris had been driven crazy when her lifemate found her after already having turned vampire. She took her insanity out on her daughter, unable to blame the man who raped and beat her nightly. Aingeal was a product of one such night._

_"Where's your mommy at, Skyler?"_

_"She's at my house," tears streaked down her dirty little face. "He said he would hurt her if I tried to run away. I don't want him biting her too." By an unspoken agreement, they never uttered Razvan's name. He seemed to know when they used it._

_Aingeal used her compelling voice to quiet the racking sobs stealing forth from Skyler's lips. "We can go tonight. I've been working on the safeguards He puts on the doorways and I think I can undo them. We can go and get your mommy and run way to Paris to live in a bell tower just like Quasimodo." Aingeal had often told Skyler the story of The Hunchback of Notre Dame. It was one of the few stories she knew. She had stolen it from her mother's mind after she had called Aingeal Quasimodo during a particularly harsh beating. To distract herself, Aingeal had invaded her mother's mind to find out what it meant. Half formed. Half mage and half vampire. She was used to such harsh vilifications from the woman who should have loved her and had moved beyond the definition to find the comforting story behind the word._

_Skyler giggled quietly, the story always relaxed her._

_"We have to do it quickly before they come back, though." Skyler bobbed her head and they clasped hands as they made their way tremblingly through the room of spheres. "I can't do it by myself."_

_Little Skyler immediately gave her power over to her friend. And so, Aingeal began the painstaking task of unraveling the safeguards Razvan had placed on the exit. It was nearly dawn before her chore was accomplished. Both little girls collapsed into a heap after Aingeal removed the last strand of the spell._

_Skyler tugged at Aingeal's hand to make her move. "I can hear someone." Skyler whispered._

_Aingeal glanced warily at the room around her. She could hear someone as well. She had been wrong, her father had not left with Razvan. He had been with her mother the whole time. She tried to get to her feet but she simply could not. Most of her energy had been consumed in an effort to preserve Skyler's strength._

_"Go!" she mouthed in a desperate attempt to save the younger girl. Skyler shook with fear, but she would not leave her companion behind. Aingeal gathered her remaining energy and flung it at Skyler to make her leave. Skyler staggered backwards dazed; the spell had blocked out all of her memories._

_Aingeal turned her voice on the girl. "Go, find your mother and live in Paris."_

_Skyler tore off up the entryway._

_Aingeal's father hissed at her from the entrance to the chambers below. "You little bitch. You are just like your whore mother was, using your witchcraft to try and escape."_

_He had not yet noticed the other girl was missing. Aingeal lay helpless on the floor, panic and exhaustion triggering a vision. Her father's foot swung towards the tiny body in punishment. As soon as she felt the mind numbing crack of contact, she wrapped her arms around her father's leg, trapping them both in her visions as her body fell limp. For hours, she was forced to watch her father kill Maris over and over._

_The vision ended and, suddenly, she was once more clutching hands with an almost 17 year old Skyler. "You're birthday is on January 6th isn't it?"_

_"Yeah," Skyler whispered, shocked by the scene she had just experienced._

_"Mine is the 12th. The last thing I remember happened right after I turned 17." Aingeal stared at the girl beside her with glowing yellow eyes. "A year. I've lost so much time, so much of myself I don't know what was there to begin with. I'm not strong like you, I can't take another chance with the world."_

_Skyler stared at her in shock. "You are strong! You sacrificed yourself to save me when you were just five years old. How could you think you're not as strong as me? All I've done is let Francesca and Gabriel take care of me."_

_"You chose to live, Skyler." Aingeal sighed, "I know why you came, and I can't do it. Maybe if it was just you I could try, but you have a family now, a real one, and I won't ruin that for you. I hurt everyone who gets close. I didn't remember it before but I love you and I don't want to drive you away."_

_Her eyes flashed a mischievous green. "So, will you leave on your own or do I have to make you?" _

_She provoked her friend, trying to lessen the burden of leaving her behind again. Skyler would never willingly desert anyone._

_Skyler smiled wickedly, unconsciously falling back into their forgotten competitiveness. Aingeal shrugged deceptively a second before launching her attack. She swiped at Skyler with her left hand, forcing her straight into an open hand blow to the chest and sending her stumbling backwards. _

_Aingeal commanded a portal to open just behind Skyler, who barely managed to catch herself before she fell through. "Ready to go yet?"_

_Skyler smirked in response and hell exploded for both of them. Flying into action, Skyler leapt forward at Aingeal who caught her legs and pulled them out from under her. She tried to pin her down until Skyler clawed blood from her arms. As soon as she was able, Skyler wiggled free from Aingeal's grasp and farther away from the portal. Aingeal stood up and pounced at her. Skyler was still on the ground and so brought up her legs and kicked Aingeal back towards the doorway. Her head fell a millimeter away from passing through to the other side. The air whooshed out of her lungs but she had no time to recover as Skyler jumped on top of her._

The ferocity of both girls, to say the least, stunned Dimitri. His connection to Skyler was so weak, even with physical contact, that he was catching only the ghosts of images. But what he did see made it look as if they were trying to tear each other's hearts out.

"What's happening, Dimitri? I cannot see anything," asked Francesca.

Dimitri smiled in his mind. Though the fight appeared vicious, neither girl was truly in danger. Still, he was unwilling to reveal the entire truth of the situation to his lifemate's mother.

"They are having a minor disagreement. Skyler is trying to 'persuade' Aingeal to exit her safe haven."

Francesca looked askance at Dimitri. Something in the way he said 'persuade' did not inspire her confidence in his assessment of the situation.

_Panting and slightly bloody, both girls lay on their backs at the threshold of Aingeal's mind._

_"I can't believe I forgot about that, it's so fun beating you up," joked Aingeal._

_"I think we both know I won."_

_Aingeal groaned and rolled over to stare at her friend. "I don't think either one of us has succeeded in forcing the other through the portal. That, my friend, is known as a draw."_

_Skyler quirked her eyebrows, "Oh really?"_

_In a flash, she grasped Aingeal's hand and flung herself through the doorway, pulling the girl along with her._

Skyler fell to the floor laughing, once more in her own body.

Aingeal called weakly to Skyler from her bed. "Ha-ha, you win."

Francesca examined her daughter swiftly before moving on to Aingeal. The young woman flinched as warm light entered her body. Francesca was appalled by the old damage present in the young girl's body. However, she and Shea had done all that was possible without giving the girl the blood and rest she desperately needed, so she exited.

Calmly, she tore open her wrist with her own teeth.

"You have sorely neglected your own health. You need to feed so your body can heal itself," Francesca reprimanded.

Aingeal tore away from the woman to the farthest corner of the bed. Shards of memory pierced her skull, memories of bites, kicks, and, whenever she was close to escaping into death, memories of hot blood being forced down her throat. She held her hand out to Skyler in a silent plea for camaraderie.

"Wait." Skyler stepped forward to put herself between her mother and her friend.

Francesca closed her wrist and stepped back to allow her daughter to handle the situation.

"What about me?" Skyler questioned Aingeal, "Can I help you?"

Aingeal almost agreed to stop the desperate look on her friend's face, but all she could see when she thought of feeding from her was a tiny Skyler with her wrist torn and ragged from Razvan's abuse. She dropped her gaze ashamedly and moved her head slightly to each side.

Skyler overcame her aversion to physical contact just enough to place a tentative hand on Aingeal's shoulder. Immediately, she was swamped with Aingeal's remorse and fear. Dimitri crossed the room in a single stride to remove his lifemate's hand from Aingeal. Her hand curled around his and her eyes stared up at him with wide-eyed faith, begging him to help her friend.

He pushed Skyler gently towards Francesca, who whisked her away from the room. Slowly, he turned around to stare down at the girl with his intense blue eyes. She held his gaze with a slightly defiant green one of her own. They stayed like that for minutes without saying or doing anything.

"Before I aid you there are things we should discuss. First, can you promise me you mean Skyler no harm?"

Aingeal's stare turned to a full on, yellow glare. "I saved her life. So, maybe I should ask you that."

"Very well," Dimitri nodded his acceptance of her answer; he certainly understood having a protective streak where Skyler was concerned. "However, our world is not without danger. You will be doubly protected for your connection to Skyler and it may chafe at you. Even then your safety is not guaranteed."

Aingeal crossed her arms over her stomach. "I expect danger every second I continue to breathe, but I will not accept the tyranny of your kind."

He casually shrugged his shoulders. "Nevertheless you will be guarded, and, in return, you will be expected to contribute to our society in whatever way you can."

She mirrored his shrug.

"That includes protecting the Prince with your life, should there be need."

"You might not have caught on to this yet, but I don't exactly value my existence that highly right now. I'd protect a flea with my life at this point."

"You cannot be suicidal and expect me to aid you in forcing yourself to remain in this world. You must have something you are willing to live for, even it is not yourself."

They stared at each in other in silence for a moment. This time Aingeal dropped her gaze.

Aingeal's eyes softened to a pale blue as she gestured vaguely to the door. "I promised Skyler."

Dimitri let out a slightly exasperated breath of air. "Skyler. At this point I think you are the one with the most hope of finding acceptance of your proffered protection."

"It's probably because I didn't make her feel incompetent when I tried to keep her safe. I let her do her own thing and just offered my help when she needed it."

"I ask that you continue to do so. That requires you to learn control over yourself and your powers."

"Sure thing, but right now I don't think I could do much more than spit at someone."

He raised an elegant brow. "Is that your charming way of telling me to dispense with the blood?"

"Indeed."

"You are going to bother me to no end," he predicted. But already he admired the courageous young woman.

He was about to break his flesh when she stopped him. "Not the wrist, okay?"

"Very well," he replied, removing his black t-shirt. It cost him something to allow her to feed this way, but he would not add to her burden of shame by revealing his discomfort. This method of feeding was much more intimate, reserved for lifemates and close friends. However, he cut open his chest without showing any of his inner qualms.

Aingeal hesitated as she approached Dimitri on unsteady legs. She had not noticed before, but he was physically beautiful. She felt happy for Skyler's find; they were true lifemates, and so, Aingeal would accept his help as willingly as she was able.

"Can you, uh…help me out with this?" She waved her hand to encompass his bleeding chest.

He swiftly took control, holding her mind with his as he stepped forward to her. She panicked as he put his hand behind her neck to pull her head to the gash. Her hand shot out to hold his pinned to his side, twisted painfully. Her teeth lengthened and sharpened slightly as she bit down roughly on his wound, a warning to keep his hands to himself. Dimitri increased the strength of his mind hold, ending the quiet growling she was emitting and forcing her to release the death grip she had on his left wrist.

He rubbed it behind his back as she continued to feed. She had damn near crushed the thing. As it was, the fractures were healing but it would still be weakened until after he could go to ground.

He waited until he was near swaying with weakness before he commanded her to close the gap in his flesh. As soon as she had done so and stepped back from him, he pulled her hand to his mouth and pierced the fleshy part of her palm with his teeth. He took only enough to ensure they would have a mental bond before carefully placing her on the bed and commanding her to sleep. This time she did not fight but succumbed to the gentle command.

It was her first rest undisturbed by nightmares or visions.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's note: Sorry this chapter took a bit longer to post. I just started a new semester and that means new homework from my AP teachers. We can all thank thejadespirit for annoying me into staying up to finish this chapter and for fixing the mistakes my sleep clogged mind made. I hope you all like it!**

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**3**

Skyler entered the room to find Dimitri replacing his shirt. Jealousy tore through her. Logically, she knew her friend would be unable to take sustenance in any way that resembled her tortured childhood. She just had not thought of what that would mean. For the first time, she connected her mind to her lifemate's to view the full scene. She saw through the eyes of a jilted mate, however, noticing only the way Aingeal's body pressed closer to Dimitri, seeking his life's essence.

_If you are going to walk in my mind, do not neglect the interesting parts. _Skyler felt his smile at her jealousy. _For instance, how uncomfortable her presence made me when all I could think of was pulling _you_ close…_

Skyler abruptly severed their connection as heat flooded her face. Her eyes flickered over to Francesca to see if she had noticed their silent byplay. Francesca seemed not to have taken note of the situation as she was busy picking Aingeal up from the bed, her back mercifully turned to Skyler's embarrassing moment.

"Is she coming back to our house?" Skyler asked Francesca.

"No, I am going to take her to the Prince's home where she will have increased protection and the soil Syndil enhanced." Francesca noted the fallen look on her daughter's face. "Perhaps, when she wakes up, she will want to stay with us, though."

"What does Gabriel think?" Skyler asked.

_What _do _you think? _Francesca inquired, knowing full well her lifemate had been spying on the situation for some time.

_I'm unsure I would enjoy having another female in the household to go against me when I clearly know best._

Francesca laughed, filling the room with the sound that so captivated Skyler. "He will endure. Dimitri, will you escort Skyler home now?"

Dimitri nodded his ascent just before Francesca streaked from the room, Aingeal curled protectively against her. Skyler's heart beat frantically at the prospect of being alone with Dimitri. Gabriel growled in her mind before being silenced by Francesca.

A small smile flirted with her lips, sending heat coursing dangerously through Dimitri's body.

"Are you ready to leave?" Dimitri asked to distract himself from Skyler's sinfully soft curves. Waiting another year might just kill him.

He lead the way without waiting for a reply, keeping his thoughts from continuing on that perilous course. Skyler hurried to catch up. When they were once more in the cleansing snow, Dimitri slowed to a pace Skyler could follow. He glanced askance at her. _His _Skyler.

He was stuck here in a torturous limbo of pleasure and pain. He could feel emotion and see color, only making him more dangerous because of his inability to claim his lifemate. All due to a whispered confession.

_"Don't leave."_

_He could not have denied her with her body pressed so close, dancing with him, willingly following his lead. But he tried for both of their sakes._

_He sighed and rubbed his chin over the top of her head, the stubble catching a few strands of her silky hair. "I cannot, _немного один. _I only hurt us both by continuing to stay here."_

_"Please. Let it be my birthday present." She pressed her face into the front of his shirt as a single tear slipped out. She was unused to needing him, uncomfortable with asking him to stay._

_He stopped dancing to simply hold her close. "Just until your birthday, love. If I don't leave then, I might not be able to."_

He jerked out of his reverie as melting snow trickled down his spine.

He had looked so forlorn that Skyler's reserved nature had abandoned her. She had picked up a palm full of snow and put it down the collar of his shirt, causing him to spin around wildly, releasing an expletive in Russian.

Skyler laughed unguardedly, lighting up her eyes with pure joy.

His heart lurched. In that moment he loved her, a true, deep love. Before he had felt lust, pride, rage. This emotion crippled the others.

He could not help it. He pulled her forward, giving her plenty of time and space to escape. At the last second, he froze, unable to move forward or backward. He would not take anything she was unwilling to give, but with her standing so close, breath harsh and lips tempting, he could not pull back.

So he waited.

An eternity. A millisecond.

At first Skyler was frightened, terrified of being pulled into a situation she could not control. But he stopped. He gave her the power to decide, and she wanted a taste of the future she was slowly accepting as a possibility.

_She brushed her lips against his. _

_Immediately, Dimitri took over. He rained kisses on her so light and gentle it felt as if he was painting her a new mouth with an artist's careful strokes. The kisses slowed and he suckled her bottom lip._

_"You make me so happy, Skyler. _You_, no one else."_

_Her face ignited and she pulled away to continue to the house where Gabriel waited with a father's horror filling his mind._

Aingeal smiled. She was awake, but pretended otherwise as she watched the vision of Skyler's first kiss play out. Two others were in the room, but, even with her unspoken promise to Skyler fresh in her mind, she was still unwilling to be near them.

_She's awake,_ Raven informed her lifemate.

Raven had insisted on attending to the young girl and Mikhail was still unhappy. He had conceded by allowing it upon the condition he went with her to sit in the corner and look surly every time she checked on Aingeal.

The girl kept her eyes closed, her breathing rapid as she fought off panic. "Where are Skyler and Dimitri?"

Raven placed her hand on top of Aingeal's, who immediately went rigid. "They are at their homes. Francesca brought you here so the soil could heal you and so we might protect you."

"Gregori? Anyone I actually know and haven't just seen in a vision?" She turned desperate eyes on Raven.

"I'm sorry, we are all you have for the moment."

Aingeal retreated towards her mind for a second before she caught herself.

_No, no, no, no, I promised. _She chanted like a mantra.

Physically connected as she was to the girl, Raven felt her withdrawal. _Mikhail!_

Mikhail was suddenly there beside her, strong and reassuring. "Come on, child, you must fight to stay in this realm."

"I'm trying!" cried Aingeal vehemently. "Talk to me about something!"

"There are four factors of production: land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship…" Mikhail began before being interrupted by Raven.

"When Savannah was young, we would sneak up on Mikhail while he took a nap and paint his fingernails pink."

Aingeal's eyes snapped open to take in Mikhail's horrified gaze; she burst out into giggles. "That works." She sprang lithely from the bed, once more in the realm of sanity. Dirt cascaded from her. She caught a handful, a frown darkening her face. "Is someone else here?"

"There is one called Dominic who slumbers in a chamber below." Mikhail answered.

Aingeal's eyes snapped to Mikhail's face. "Francesca told me he is Dragonseeker, like Skyler. Why is he here?"

Raven explained, "A couple of weeks ago a battle occurred during which many Carpathians were in danger." Aingeal noted the use of the word Carpathian instead of vampire and filed it away for further examination at a later date. "When we tried to retreat from a trap, Dominic ran into a mage web and half of his upper body was severely burned. Some sort of latent magic is preventing him from healing properly. So, he's in the basement napping in our super dirt."

The frown vanished from Aingeal's face at Raven's attempt to cheer her up. She was beginning to really like the woman, even if her lifemate seemed rather distant and imposing. "I can feel his agony in the earth you gave me for healing. I've never been able to ignore another's pain, not even… Anyway, I _need _to help him. Will you allow me to see if I can give him aid?"

"Do you also have the gift of healing?" Mikhail questioned the girl.

"My gift gives me access to a lot of knowledge. So, yes, I am a healer. I'm also a many other things, but, most relevant at this time, I am a mage with the natural ability to provide whatever a person may need."

"Forgive me, I did not mean to imply a lack of faith in your abilities. I was simply curious."

"I'm sorry, too," she whispered, ashamed of her outburst. "I just do that when I'm frightened."

She did not say it, but it was apparent to Mikhail she feared his wariness of her; she interpreted it as rejection and doubt. His attitude warmed immensely at this epiphany.

He flashed her a smile. "Shall we?"

Mikhail lead the way to one of the many tunnels beneath his home. As Raven chattered at the young woman in an attempt to make her feel welcome, he sent ahead a message to Dominic, informing him of the healer he brought along. Upon hearing this, Dominic once more shut down his heart and lungs, preferring not to be awake for yet another examination.

At the entrance to the healing chamber, Mikhail stopped to wave aside the stone barrier. The inside of the room was beautiful, a beauty only enhanced by its nearness to the realm of the dead. The used corpses of candles stood peaceful and dim next to their weeping, flickering brethren. In this room, the barriers separating the levels of the tree of life frayed, almost into nonexistence.

Aingeal shivered. She had witnessed in many visions healers who traveled to the land of the dead to save those who lay before them, grievously wounded. That power called to her. She turned away from it, however, unwilling, for the moment, to tempt death into keeping her in its chilling embrace. The shiver as the earth parted helped to call her back to her duties.

She looked into the pit and was immediately entranced. He was an Adonis bare to her gaze, a dragon adorning his left hip. The creature's mouth opened upward towards the burns marring the left half of his torso. Her eyes continued to trace the burns as Mikhail lifted Dominic to the floor of the healing room. For a moment, he warred with indecision; it was natural for a healer to have full access to the body of a patient, and she did seem fully preoccupied with his injury, but she was, after all, still a youth. He decided upon the middle road and fashioned a simple, white sheet to cover Dominic's lower half. Distracted, as she was at this point, by the injuries covering her patient's body, she did not even notice.

"I'm going to need a crystal dish filled with water, preferably from a natural spring, and a fleshy leaf of aloe." She ran her hands through the air just over the burns that continued to radiate heat.

Mikhail removed the items she requested from a niche in the wall and transferred them to the ground beside the young healer. Raven poured the spring water from the silver pitcher and into the crystal dish. Aingeal allowed the woman to assist as she split open the aloe leaf and motioned for the bowl to be placed between herself and Dominic. She swirled the leaf in the bowl to release its healing juices before replacing it with her hand. Her eyes and fingers glowed silver as she examined the markings entwined with the burns on Dominic's body.

Without giving herself time to think, she placed her right hand on his side and channeled a few of the marks for damage and pain into herself. Much as the Carpathians dealt with poison, Aingeal drew the damaging spell into herself to discover how to take it apart and turn it into an antidote. The patterns used to create the evil magic swirled in her center, wreaking havoc for a moment before she could right herself and unravel the latent spell. Once complete, she funneled the dismantled spell into the crystal bowl, where it rebounded and interwove itself with the water.

She broke out into a sweat. The spell had done a surprising amount of damage during the small period of time it had taken her to neutralize it. Her power wavered with her focus as she became aware of her own injuries. She placed both hands in the bowl before her and pushed aside everything, including the tremendous pain and the oncoming vision. She called for her spell, allowing it to wind lovingly around her hands.

Smoothing the air over Dominic's burns, she turned her sight inwards, where she had to direct her antidote to cover and nullify all of the mage's spell. Her mage nature required that complete attention be given to her own power, however, to heal while simultaneously dismantling magic, she had to acquiesce to her Carpathian heritage as well. She was unable to completely remove herself from her own body and remain aware of her physical actions. Instead, her healing aura extended from her hands in a visible silver glow. It went just far enough to reach the wounds.

She took her time, eradicating all traces of the injury from his arm and most of his side and back until she came near the end of her strength. She desperately sought out the last few drops in the vessel just as the glow emanating from her fingers ceased . Her arms went limp, refusing to hold her hands in the air any longer. Her fingers connected with the Dominic's dragon tattoo in a flash of silver as her powers returned. Hurriedly, her hands spread the last of her potion over the remainder of his burns. There was just enough left to negate the spell damaging his flesh, but not enough to erase the marks marring his torso just above the dragon.

Without the boost of energy surging through her, the pain of the burns on her own body took the uppermost place in her mind. Her left hand trembled as she pulled the material of her shirt away from the burns that marked her right shoulder. They were an exact reflection of the damage Dominic had carried. Skin peeled away with the garment and a muffled scream escaped between Aingeal's clenched teeth. Suddenly, she was on her feet and pacing, eyes and teeth clamped tight, head tilted back as if cursing powers unseen for the pain she endured.

It was in Raven's mind to rush forward and aid the young woman, even though Aingeal was stirring a lot of fear inside of Raven. Mikhail stopped her by going forward himself. He reached a hand slowly towards her; when it was within an inch of her undamaged shoulder, her yellow eyes sprang open to stare at him like an intent predator. His whole body reversed direction as if an invisible bubble were expanding around her.

"I'm fine," she replied, her voice dead. Truthfully, it felt as if she might shatter at any moment, so great was the force of the vision she held out against. She had never triumphed for so long before in the face of her 'gift.' Aingeal calmly made her way from the chamber, her arm held stiffly so as not to trigger any more pain. As the girl passed by, Raven was repulsed in a similar manner as her husband had been, pressed tightly into the wall for a second.

Mikhail caught his lifemate as she hurriedly tried to replace the air that had been wrung from her lungs. Meanwhile, Aingeal made her way back, with deadly poise, to the room she had awakened in. Frames and furniture shuddered with her every delicate step. The door swung open as she neared it and slammed shut when her feet sank into the carpet. Her nails and eyes darkened to a deep black even as her hair lightened to a silvery blonde. She sat on the edge of the bed, her wide eyes unseeing as she tumbled into a chaotic collage of visions. Her now blonde hair whipped as if in a frenzied wind and pulses of restrained imagery emanated from her in waves. Items were pushed across the surfaces of the night stand and dresser until they collided with the wall. If she had been able to distinguish between the onslaught of visions rushing her, Aingeal would have seen many similar displays of power.

_Gregori! _Raven and Mikhail called to the healer. Without waiting for a reply, they sent him their memories of Aingeal healing Dominic and the subsequent injuries she sustained.

_Leave her to her own devices until Savannah and I arrive, _instructed Gregori. Already the couple was streaking to the Prince's home.

A tear leaked from Raven's eye onto Mikhail's silk shirt. Raven was leaving herself open to the child's agony in order to know the moment she might need-or accept-

assistance. Immediately upon realizing what was happening, Mikhail built a thick mental wall to separate her from Aingeal.

"Do not do that to yourself, love. Gregori will soon be here to help the girl, and, in the meantime, she is no danger."

It was a few moments before Mikhail felt Gregori and his daughter enter his home. Savannah rocketed down the tunnel toward her parents as Gregori went to attend to Aingeal.

Gregori monitored his lifemate to make sure she was safely with her father and mother before entering the room which held the girl. By this time, she was somewhat more in control of herself; her visions had ceased and the waves pulsing from her had weakened enough that they were easily brushed aside by Gregori as he entered. Aingeal looked up as he came in and met his silver gaze with eyes that were an eerie mixture of blue and black.

He did not mention her drastic change in appearance or her odd behavior, for which she was grateful. He simply sat on the bed next to her. After they remained there for a number of minutes and the energy waves ceased completely, he reached his left hand toward her. She shifted away from him slightly, but otherwise made no objections. So, he slit open the back of her shirt to be able to take a look at her burns. He peeled it gently from her right side. Even so, he could not stop pieces of flesh from accompanying the material, causing her to go rigid with each separation. By the time the right portion of her shirt hung loose from her body, Aingeal was panting and shivering.

"Can we come up now?" inquired Savannah.

Gregori guided the teen into laying facedown on the bed before replying. "Yes. Just make sure your father brings soil with him."

Savannah relayed the message to her father, who grumbled good-naturedly. "Sometimes I wonder who is whose Second in Command."

Despite his words, he stooped to gather some of the soil they had replaced over Dominic.

Gregori waited for the trio to join him, giving Aingeal a break. As soon as they arrived, he continued to uncover her wounds by undoing the catch of her bra and slitting the strap so she would not have to move again. Expertly, he withdrew the light of his soul from his own body and plunged into Aingeal's. The burns seemed shallow, as if they had had only seconds to form under an extremely hot flame. He moved to the lower layers of skin, strengthening them to ensure no scarring would occur.

Slowly, he returned to his own body, unable to heal the first few layers of skin. "Raven, Savannah, could you help the girl into the shower? Mikhail and I will wait in the living room."

Both women nodded and waited for the men to leave the room before approaching Aingeal. The pain had receded enough that exhaustion had finally registered. She dozed lightly on the bed. Savannah gently shook her left shoulder, just enough to bring her into a state of semi-consciousness.

"Come on, dear," Raven crooned as if to a small child. "You need a shower to wash the dead skin off and prevent infection."

Aingeal succeeded in rolling off the bed but it was mostly the two women who supported her into the bathroom. Modesty barely registered as Raven removed the tatters of her shirt and bra, the same with Savannah and her lower garments. Savannah turned on the shower, and, as it became apparent the youth would not be able to stand on her own, Raven stepped into the shower fully clothed to hold the younger woman upright.

"Get the cloth and the herbal soap from the counter," instructed Raven to her daughter. Savannah responded with action, immediately complying. She ran the cloth under the faucet and lathered the soap into it. When that was done she returned to the shower to remove the flaking skin as gently as possible from Aingeal's shoulder. Even so, Aingeal winced and whimpered, the fact that she made any noise at all a testament to exactly how weary she was. Raven hummed snippets of lullabies to the girl as her tears of exhaustion mingled with the water running from the showerhead.

When Savannah reached the girl's collarbone with the cloth, she was startled to uncover the head of a dragon tattoo akin to the ones that adorned the bodies of the Dragonseeker line. Its color and location were the only differences between this tattoo and the Dragonseeker mark; hers was a metallic silver, whereas Dominic's mark was black. As the girl was half dead on her feet, she did not seem to notice. It was apparent, however, that the adornment was a very recent addition, as the skin above it carried no hint of the design below. Savannah quirked an eyebrow at her mother, who only shrugged as the tattoo was revealed to curve all the way from the top of the girl's collarbone to the swell of her breast.

When the last of the dead skin was removed, Raven stepped out of the shower to dry and clothe herself in the way of the Carpathians. Savannah turned off the water and followed after them, back into the bedroom. The damage seemed reduced to that of a wicked sunburn. And so, as Aingeal had fallen asleep while standing up, Raven placed her in the bed and smeared aloe over the large red patches of the girl's skin. As soon as she had covered the girl with the comforter, Raven informed the men that they could return.

Mikhail and Gregori were barely in the door before Savannah revealed her knowledge. "The girl has a tattoo similar to the Dragonseekers, and I'm certain it could not have been there before she received those burns."

"How do you know when she received the tattoo?" asked Mikhail.

It was Gregori who responded, having read his lifemate's mind. "It was below her burned flesh and could not have been there prior to the healing session during which she was injured."

Gregori walked to the bedside to examine the part of the dragon that peeked above the covers.

"How was it placed on her skin?" Raven questioned.

"I am unsure at the moment."

Savannah frowned at her lifemate. "He suspects that the dragon was serving to protect Dominic, to some degree, from the mage's taint. It seems that Aingeal's burns advanced so rapidly because she did not have this barrier at first. When she pulled the mage's spell into her body, however, the dragon's power was laced in with the other magic and it marked her as it did the first Dragonseeker."

Gregori corrected his lifemate. "There must have been something to trigger the marking of her flesh, as she did not have the protection from the time she brought the spell into her own body."

"There was a moment when it seemed her energy gave out," Raven observed. "It seemed then that her hand connected with Dominic's mark in a flash of silver and she was able to continue healing him."

All four pairs of eyes turned to stare at the girl lying so peacefully on the bed.

"She must be very gifted indeed," remarked Mikhail.

* * *

Dominic awoke four hours before sunrise, amazed at the lack of pain attacking his body. He recalled cool hands running over him, taking away the agony and leaving behind a sense of peace. He wanted those hands back. 

He shook his head to dismiss the thought; he assumed he had sensed one of the women healers, either Francesca or Shea, working as he slumbered. Dominic believed he might be turning vampire, craving another's woman as he was, even if it was just the thought of those hands once more giving him peace.

As always, he tamped down the voice of temptation. He was a Dragonseeker, and though the time was closing in on him to choose the dawn, he had a purpose and would not quit this world until he had fulfilled it. It was his sole responsibility to track down the children fathered by his great grandnephew Razvan and bring them to the protection of the Carpathian society.

So, on this numbered day, he once more rose and clothed himself. The feel of hands haunted his thoughts. All he had left was honor, but it seemed as if that last virtue would be ripped from his grasp as well. The most troubling truth, however, is that he acknowledged the fact of his demise but did not truly care.

Dominic turned to mist and streamed through the tunnel to Mikhail's house. Just before immersing himself in the night, he contacted his Prince.

_Thank the healer,_ were the only parting words he offered before melting into the darkness of the world.

"Is he well enough to begin his quest for Razvan's offspring?" inquired Raven.

"Gregori examined him and declared that there were no injuries that could be healed except by rest and time," Mikhail answered his lifemate.

"Still, it seems as if there is some reason Dominic should not leave yet."

Aingeal, who had slept peacefully until that moment, thrashed fitfully on the bed.

* * *

**Author's note: nudge nudge, wink wink I love reviews! Also, if I need to clarify anything for you, I'm more than willing.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: I received a question about Aingeal's shifting appearance. As a response, I very dutifully answered with more information than I probably should have given away. For the rest of you, I've included as much information as is pertinent to the story line as of now. It is in this chapter. Oh yeah, and sorry for how long it has taken for me to post...AP classes and what not (I got a 105 on a AP Calc. test and a 9, on a 1-9 scale, for an essay in AP Lang.!!!)... Well, as always, read, enjoy, review!**

* * *

**4**

Aingeal awoke and pressed her palms into her eyes to erase the green gaze that had haunted most of her rest. It was with her hands hiding her sight that she realized something. This rising she felt…_different._ Less chaotic.

Her eyes snapped open at the revelation. Normally her dual magic warred inside of her, Carpathian and mage powers both seeking dominance. For the moment, however, they seemed to be working in concert with one another. She looked inside of herself for the answer.

A third power, foreign to herself, seemed to wind itself through her magic, connecting her two halves. A curious frown crossed her face and she followed the curling trails this third presence seemed to weave through her bloodstream. What she found surprised her enough that she flung the covers away to examine her right shoulder with her physical eyes.

A silver dragon was nestled in the hollow of her collar bone, its tail winding down towards her chest. She ran her fingers lightly over the new adornment. Her right side was still mostly covered in a severe sunburn, but the area closest to the dragon was completely healed. She was in awe of this silent magic. Where hers raged and demanded recognition, the power of this quiet dragon went about its business unpretentiously.

In fact, all of the Carpathian's seemed to have this calm well of strength. Yet, it appeared they respected her shallow talents. For, her powers were unexpected but certainly not extraordinary. The humanity of these "vampires," as she still thought them, overwhelmed her. Even her mother had not been so accepting.

A vision pressed at her with the thought of her mother, but it was not very insistent. She frowned inquisitively at the dragon once more before crossing the room to the closet she suspected Raven had filled with clothes in her size. Sure enough, the wardrobe was bursting with garments in every fashion. Aingeal simply could not process all of the conflicting styles bombarding her senses. There was everything from high end dresses to jeans with holes in the knees.

Aingeal chose something simple, a black off the shoulder shirt and a pair of the jeans. She found underwear and socks in the dresser and clothed herself in front of its large mirror. She looked like any other teen in the world and it was a new experience for her. The young woman in the mirror quirked a smile at her before walking out of the frame. The girls Aingeal had seen had seemed more painted.

In the bathroom she rummaged through drawers to find the little containers of makeup. She was laughing hysterically by the time she had managed to open one of them in a sudden puff of powder. Obviously, this required some skill and, as luck would have it, Skyler had arrived with her family for a visit.

_Is this some sort of torture device? _Aingeal inquired jokingly of her friend as she inspected a tool that looked suspiciously like a guillotine attached to scissor handles.

Skyler's reply was a mental shake of the head. _Put that down before you hurt yourself. I will be up to rescue you in a moment._

Aingeal rolled her eyes at the sarcasm in Skyler's response, but she complied, stepping away from the growing pile of cosmetics she kept finding in the drawers.

Skyler's pleasantries with the Prince took longer than Aingeal's curiosity would allow, though, and she was soon back to fiddling with the makeup. An idea sparked in her head and she decided to play a little prank on Skyler. She liked to see Skyler laugh and she knew exactly how to accomplish that goal. So, she picked up a few of the odd ends lying scattered on the counter and began to brush powder and various other cosmetics on her face with inexperienced hands. By the time she finished, Aingeal thought she looked somewhat like a very gothic clown and so went to stand behind the door to wait for Skyler.

Her mind was so focused on her small joke that she was not as attentive as to who exactly was coming to her door as she should have been. Consequently, she missed the sound of the much lighter steps hidden beneath Skyler's foot falls.

"Boo!" Aingeal pounced in front of the now open doorway.

Skyler and Gabriel both erupted into laughter. Aingeal's full faced smile had evaporated as soon as she realized Gabriel was present, but she tried valiantly for a small smirk as it became apparent he was not going to condemn her for being a loon. Still, she attempted to conceal as much of her face as possible with her hair. Skyler soon recovered and pulled her friend along with her to the bathroom.

"That was horrible," Aingeal stated as soon as the bathroom door was securely shut behind them.

Skyler cocked her head to the side. "It was hilarious."

Aingeal gave her a deadpan stare. "He thinks I'm loony."

Skyler shrugged as if to say, 'Well, it's the truth' and dragged her to sit on the edge of the bathtub to remove the makeup from her face. As Skyler sat armed with makeup remover and cotton balls, a frown creased her brow.

"You look different."

"I _feel _different," responded Aingeal with a frown mirroring Skyler's.

Skyler inquired further as she removed the cosmetics with the tiny cotton swab. "I didn't really notice before, but your hair is almost blonde now, when it used to be black. Why is that?"

"Most of the time I feel like I'm two people; one is my father's and the other is my mother's. Sometimes one side wins out for a while and takes over my magic, leaving my appearance vulnerable. I think it's always been like that, but now," she grabbed Skyler's hand, "now, I feel like I'm my own. I'm still part of both of my parents but I'm not theirs. Do you understand?" Her eyes pleaded with her friend in a desperate plea for understanding.

Skyler's own eyes were haunted with the memories her guardians kept at bay and her voice was hushed. "Yes." She composed herself somewhat, "Why, though? I wasn't free from my father until long after he was dead and Francesca and Gabriel gave me the support I needed to become myself."

Aingeal adjusted the top of her shirt to expose her right shoulder instead of her left. Her eyes lingered on the small silver engraving before snapping to Skyler's gaze. "It has something to do with this. It feels like it put a piece of me back I didn't know I was missing."

Skyler reached out to brush her fingers over the silver head of the dragon. "Wow," was all she managed.

They sat in contemplative silence as Skyler finished removing the makeup from Aingeal's face. As she rose to collect the cosmetics she would put on Aingeal, she lingered with her back to her friend, fingers running lightly over the small collection on the counter as she broached the subject that had been on her mind since setting foot in the Prince's home.

"Aingeal…" she hesitated but Aingeal simply waited for her to continue as they stared at each other in the mirror. "Will you come live with us?"

Aingeal sighed and spoke very gently to her companion, knowing she was going to break her heart. "No, Skyler." Skyler's gaze dropped from the mirror, but Aingeal stepped closer to be able to stare into her tear filled gaze. "I love you, you know that, and I wish I could stay with you but I can't." Aingeal sighed again. "We both need to…I don't know, grow up? I'm not your whole family anymore, and, like you said, they are letting you be _you. _All I do is connect you to a terrifying past."

Skyler's eyes were hurt. "You are still a part of who I am."

Aingeal pressed her shoulder into her friend's. "I know, but you are _all _of me, at the moment, and it's not fair for you."

Skyler stepped back to look at her friend with slight defiance coloring her sorrow. "I don't care, you should at least stay for a while. It's almost my birthday and I barely have any friends."

Aingeal wanted to hug her friend, but she physically could not. She averted her eyes, speaking only loudly enough to be barely heard. "I won't leave you; I _can't _leave you. I just can't live with you." She made the mistake of looking up into Skyler's face again. "At least not permanently. I'll stay with you for a few days until your birthday. It will give me time to find a house of my own."

Skyler gave a watery smile and hugged Aingeal, ignoring both of their aversions to contact. She waved at the cosmetics littering the counter. "Come on, we better get this over with before they come to see if we've drowned in the sink or some such."

Aingeal shrugged and gave herself over to Skyler's ministering.

* * *

Gabriel had given up on waiting for the girls and had so gone downstairs to converse with Mikhail and Raven. He sat on one of the luxurious sofas with his lifemate Francesca as their daughter played with stuffed animals left over from Savannah's infancy. As all of them were fully Carpathian, they had heard every word of Aingeal's decision. 

"What are we going to do with the girl?" Gabriel inquired to the room.

"She's too young; she can't just go live by herself," was Raven's reply.

"It would not end well, love, if we were to force her to stay with Francesca and Gabriel. She could very well retreat permanently if we did so," warned Mikhail. "She seems capable of reasoning for herself. We will simply have to persuade her."

So they waited until Aingeal and Skyler came to join them. When she was halfway down the stairs, Aingeal felt their intense gazes and nervously covered the dragon tattoo with her shirt.

Gabriel glanced askance at his lifemate. Without the foolish makeup, Aingeal appeared far different from the girl he had seen in Francesca's mind. Luckily, he was prepared for this by his eavesdropping.

All of the Carpathians smiled up at her, even the baby, but Aingeal still felt very self-conscious. The rhythm of her heart increased as she sat in an empty recliner, their eyes still fixated on her.

Mikhail broke the awkward silence first. "We have come to understand that you do not intend to live with Francesca and Gabriel. Where, then, do you wish to live?" Tact was the greater part of diplomacy and Mikhail feigned a lack of knowledge in the matter.

"I've lived on my own for a long time and I'm going to continue doing so." The reply was quiet but said in such a way as to imply she would not readily accept any alternative.

"In our culture, and it is the same with the humans, children do not leave their guardians until they are at least eighteen." Mikhail countered.

Aingeal smiled, a small gesture of triumph. "I will be eighteen just six days after Skyler's birthday."

"Very well," Mikhail was not entirely pleased with this information. "Until then, however, you are still in the care of our people. I believe you have made it clear that you will only stay with Skyler for the three days until her birthday. So what of after that? You are, after all, welcome in any Carpathian home, including my own."

Aingeal stumbled on the gap in her plan. "I…I don't know." She thought for a moment. "I've seen almost all of your people in visions, but I haven't met many. I-If it's alright, I would like to visit each of them."

She stared with timid concentration at the Prince, almost forgetting the others. His decision meant a lot to her, the possibility of finally meeting the fairy tale people she had visited so often with her chaotic powers.

Mikhail nodded once. "We will make the necessary arrangements. In the meantime, Raven and Sara have started a school of sorts and I believe it would be beneficial for you to attend."

That seemed to shock Aingeal somewhat. "You guys have a school?"

"Sort of," interjected Raven. "We recently started making arrangements for the males to tutor the children whenever they have time. I'm sure, as you stay with each of the couples, they wouldn't mind sharing their skills with you."

A light ignited once more in the depths of Aingeal's eyes. "You mean I could study music with…" Aingeal fluttered her hands, unable to recall the name she was seeking. "She's blind and plays the piano?"

"Antonietta?" replied Francesca.

She turned her eyes to the woman quietly playing with the infant now in her arms. Aingeal shook her head. "I can't remember, but that sounds right. So, can I?"

Aingeal knew she sounded ridiculously hopeful, but she could not help herself. One of the few things she remembered clearly about her isolation was, one day, stumbling upon the perfect flute and buying it when she was not even sure she could afford a home or the little food she required. The silver sang to her, coaxing and teaching her during her endless hours of practice. The music had welled up inside of her as if it had always been there, sleeping. So, she had worked her way through smaller orchestras until she was accepted in the New York philharmonic. She had traveled with them, earning enough to pay for her flute and a little to save besides.

"Of course!" responded Raven brightly, surprised by the girl's obvious passion.

Mikhail appeared thoughtful, however. "You do not remember your visions clearly?"

"No…"

Mikhail realized his tone made the girl wary and so changed his demeanor, a warm smile lighting his face. "I'm sure you can gain more control of your powers once you begin your lessons."

Aingeal knew Mikhail questioned that fact with more curiosity than seemed appropriate. After all, most of her life was a blur only interrupted briefly by highlights of significant moments. Prying at any fact for too long caused her mental pain, though, so she moved along the conversation readily upon noticing Raven and Mikhail seemed to be discussing it further, privately.

"Um, so when are we going?" Aingeal asked.

Gabriel answered as Skyler shifted her position to the floor so she could play with the baby she held in her arms. "After we collect your things, we can be off."

"My things…"Aingeal looked embarrassed. "But I can't repay anyone right now. My money is all in the bank and they're watching, OW!" She got an instant headache along with the resurfacing information.

Mikhail raised an eyebrow at his lifemate. _Pain when trying to access memories and what sounds like the society watching, it seems like the all too familiar handiwork of Razvan._

Raven shivered.

"Do not worry, little one, Carpathians value each other more than any sum of money," Mikhail assured the girl.

"_Carpathian, _I think I'm starting to understand what that means," Aingeal announced.

Gabriel inquired of her gently, "And what do you believe it stands for?"

Aingeal blushed furiously, dropping her head to inspect the toe of her shoe. "Family," was all she mumbled.

* * *

She and Skyler had spent all of the time between arriving at the house and the present roaming around the dwelling. Consequently, Aingeal was sore, but still entirely captivated by her surroundings, by the time she collapsed on the bed that had been deemed hers. It was on the third floor across the hall from the room that Skyler had bounded off to in order to change into her pajamas. 

So far, the dining room had dazzled her, the library had enthralled her, and her room had touched her. The prospect of leaving saddened her, as she could all too easily picture herself living here. Skyler broke through her morose reverie, though, as she reentered the bedroom looking ready for sleep. Aingeal glanced at the clock, 2:00 a.m., still relatively early for her to go to bed.

"So what did you think?"

"The house was wicked," replied Aingeal.

Skyler stared at her craftily. "Enough to make you want to stay?"

Aingeal sighed, for what felt like the billionth time, at yet another insinuation she should not leave. "Yes, it makes me want to stay even more, but I'm not." Her eyes were hard as she said the last bit, trying to impress upon her friend the truth.

Skyler's eyes misted for a moment. They did no more than that, however, as she had become accustomed to hearing the rejection. She simply was not going to stop as long as Aingeal was staying in their house. After all, she might change her mind.

Aingeal knew differently. She was going to leave and her friend was going to continue pestering her.

So she lied to avoid controversy. "I'm really tired, Skyler. I think I'll go to bed now."

"Okay, you want a stuffed animal or anything?"

"Sure." Aingeal followed Skyler across the hall to pick out one of the furry creatures. They were all beautiful and kept pristine one a shelf, all except one, a little gray wolf who looked very shabby indeed sitting next to his well groomed brethren.

Aingeal reached out to stroke his tiny felt nose. "Who's he?"

Skyler's hand snatched out like lightning, drawing the wolf safely into her arms. "Not him." Aingeal stared quizzically at her until she continued. "It was the first thing Francesca and Gabriel ever gave me. It came from Dimitri's wolf foundation."

"Don't worry, I was just wondering who he was. I prefer the penguin." She let her hand slide across the shelf until she could grasp the little terry cloth creature. The small tag attached to his hip declared his name. "Perky, eh? Still, what's the wolf's name."

Skyler's cheeks turned a delicate pink color. "Dimitri."

Aingeal turned to go back to her room before Skyler could see her radiantly happy smile. "'Night," she called as she reached the doorway.

"Wait! What do you want for your birthday?"

Aingeal was startled and blurted and answer before thinking. "Nothing."

"Come on, there must be something."

"I don't know, what do people normally request for their birthdays?"

Skyler was stunned for a moment by that response. It had been so long since she had not had a birthday celebration, it surprised her how far she had come as to be astonished by someone who did not know the mechanics of the birthday concept.

She finally answered. "Um, books, stuffed animals, just stuff you like."

Aingeal cocked her head and stared down at the little penguin in her hands. "Can I have him?"

"Sure," Skyler laughed, "but you don't officially get to have him until the party."

"The party? You mean the one for your birthday?"

"It's not just my party anymore, it's yours too."

Aingeal started hyperventilating, which scared Skyler. "My…party…too?" The shadow of a vision broke through her newly erected resistance, and she suddenly saw herself in what seemed like, to her, a swarm of people. "Oh, crap." She leaned against the doorway. "I really can't do that. I mean, I didn't even really plan on going when it was just for you."

Skyler hovered near her, trying to comfort Aingeal without actually touching her. "It won't be so bad. I mean there are presents and cake, nothing dangerous or anything."

"People. Lots and lots of people." Aingeal turned yellow eyes upon Skyler's face.

"You'll be fine. I will be right beside you the whole time, I promise."

Aingeal gave a queasy nod. She could go for a while as long as Skyler was near. "I'm going to bed now."

She suddenly felt real weariness at the prospect of the heavy burden of so many gazes resting upon her. She trod across the hall and snicked the door shot behind her in a zombie trance. She pressed her forehead into the cool wood of the door and her numbness faded, leaving behind a revelation. She would have to find a birthday present for Skyler. Her first thought was The Hunchback of Notre Dame but she had clearly seen that lying on Skyler's nightstand. So, her well of ideas was tapped.

She ran into the bathroom and threw up a little bit. She was unable to deal with any sort of social problem whatsoever, so, she pushed it from her mind. She concentrated, instead, upon the menial tasks of readying herself for bed, taking extra care to remove all of the sour taste from her mouth.

Amongst the things Raven had purchased for her, Aingeal found cotton sleep pants and a large t-shirt. She wrapped herself in these garments and fell onto the extremely soft bed, her mind still painfully aware of its awkwardness in a social crisis. And so, she fell to sleep, her mind shifting from panicked thoughts, to panicked dreams, and finally into a vision.

* * *

_A blonde woman stood at the prow of an ancient ship; her two sisters, one red and the other black haired, stood beside her. They were traveling along on one of the Viking voyages. This particular journey would take them to the heart of Greece to seek out others with their talents. It was not uncommon, in their clan, to possess the gift of 'sight,' however, their powers had grown beyond those of even the oldest witch of their family. So, they were being sent away, banished really, until they could find a way to control the magic inside of them._

_The vision shifted, resettling to depict the three women in the city of Athens._

_At the moment, they were spinning thread to eventually weave into garments and sell. It was months since they arrived and they had still not found a teacher. In the meantime, they waited, making money in what ways they could. So they spun cloth and, as they spun, they saw visions for those who were willing to pay and brave enough to visit. Klotho would look into the past, Lachesis saw the present and future, and Atropos predicted deaths. Some of their patrons believed they made fates instead of simply viewing them. This is how they came to be known, and feared, as Fates. Of course, these were not their real names but titles attached to them by their somewhat unwilling sponsors._

_Still, Lachesis was restless as their powers continued to go untamed, and so, the three followed rumors of mages into the Carpathian mountains._

_The vision splintered into smaller images of what appeared to be countless hours of spells and, later, battle. As the three traveled home they were swept up in the first Peloponnesian war. _

_Aingeal, however, was taken away by her continued worry over Skyler's absent gift. A thread, much like that which the three sisters had spun, pulled her into yet another vision, this one of the immediate future instead of the distant past. _

_Aingeal watched as Skyler opened a miniscule silver wrapped box to reveal an engraved four leaf clover locket._

Aingeal opened her eyes, smiling at the future about to unfold. She was no longer wary of what was to come, she closed her eyes and slept without further visions of the past or future. Instead, she dreamed of the present and captivating green eyes.

* * *

Dominic was uncharacteristically distracted, his mind straying from his firm grasp to wander in search of some connection it never seemed to find no matter how far it reached. He ran his fingers through his already tousled hair before pressing both hands firmly into his weary eyes, blocking his vision of the ground he had been calmly searching for clues. 

His first night free of injuries, he had sought out the mage's cave. It was, of course, full of vampires. He would have brought all to the justice of his Prince if his mission allowed, but the locating of his scattered family required a rather more subtle approach. So, the next night he had gone out hunting one of the lesser vampires, waiting for his chance to suck the parasites from the grotesque, walking corpse and pose as one of their number.

The trick was catching one alone, and tonight he had found some luck. Instead of locating a mere vampire he had chanced upon his great nephew Razvan. He intended to rip the knowledge of Razvan's children right from the monster's skull as he was distracted by feeding.

In the back of his mind, the knowledge he should feel remorse for the unwilling human sacrifice merely tickled Dominic's conscious thought. He did not have time for sentiment tonight. The Malinovs were near to their master, in case he should have need, or on the rarer chance he would allow them to feed again after their glaring failure to kill the Prince of Carpathians. Each night Razvan would glut himself on the human chattel, right in front of the ravenous eyes of his minions. Afterward, he permitted them to suck the dying drops from his victims, just enough to keep their minds and bodies ready to fight and more than necessary to teach them the price of failure.

A small lie of a smile warped Dominic's features as Razvan stepped out of the shadows, right on time. The woman did not have the time to scream as the vampire clamped his mouth onto her jugular. The pack of diapers she had rushed out to buy fell to the sidewalk as Razvan dragged his prey into the shadows. A mental gasp not his own sounded in Dominic's mind, releasing a burst of color and pity for the young woman being sucked inexorably towards her demise.

He leapt forward just before the person who had connected with him evaporated, taking all emotion with her.

_Run. _He commanded the victim in restored battle calm. His cool logic deemed his previous emotional response unacceptable. He reacted instantly to the new situation, however, not stopping to dwell on his single perceived mistake in centuries.

The three remaining Malinov brothers swept to their master's side as the woman shambled into a compulsory run. Failure was possible but not likely. With this thought, Dominic opened his arms to accept the trios first attack. They collided with him as they might a brick wall.

Before he could turn to dispatching them, Razvan began to slink away. Dominic turned his full attention to the mastermind, attacking and paralyzing with his thoughts before he pounced. Dominic powered through almost nonexistent mental barriers to grab at information. He did not have time for finesse as all three emaciated vampires had latched on to him, slowly drawing his great strength into themselves. They had been far too starved to go for a death shot when the replenishing blood of an ancient was so near, pulsing just below the thin surface of skin.

He easily found the faces of numerous women in Razvan's mind, all former lovers and potential carriers of his offspring. In fact, he found the information he sought before the blood loss had time to register. Yet, he stayed in the mind of his enemy as further knowledge tempted him.

Dominic did not hesitate, he plunged his fangs into Razvan's shoulder to grant him the time and strength needed to continue his looting. His original plan was unwittingly completed as thousands of parasites made their way into his bloodstream. Dominic carried on, unheeding of the microscopic army. He had found the plans for the Carpathians' demise.

Dominic finally released the wildly struggling Razvan. The Malinov brothers clutched with all of the tenacity of rabid dogs as Dominic attempted to shake them loose as well. As they refused to let go, he staggered under the effects of their combined weights and loss of blood. He tried to send the information by way of a mental call to Falcon, to Gabriel, to Anyone.

_Shit. _Apparently vampires came laced with paralytics these days.

The Malinov brothers loomed over him, temporarily sated by the ancient blood, as Razvan gave orders to return, with their prisoner, to the ice cave. Dominic shut down his heart and lungs, unable to do anything else at the moment.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: There are sexual references in this chapter, but, as I assume you all read Christine Feehan, I don't think it will shock your _virginal_ minds. Also, if you can't remember who Maris is, she will be important in this chapter. She is Aingeal's mother, but, if you want further information, I suggest you go back and take a look at Chapter 2. I hope you enjoy this new addition. Please review!**

* * *

**5**

Air refused to enter her lungs. Aingeal sat up; her beautiful dream of green eyes had turned sinister. Somehow, visions of Razvan had pervaded her unconscious thoughts, turning them into a nightmare. He had attacked a woman, a woman who had a small child waiting for her. Even so, she could have handled such accustomed cruelty if it had not been for the green eyes. Those eyes, the eyes haunting her sweet dreams, had been pitiless, apathetic to the woman's plight.

Aingeal shuddered as she drew breaths in shards. It frightened her that her only emotional rock could be so like the monsters of her childhood. She knew now exactly how right she had been to keep him, the owner of the green eyes, at bay, never delving further than necessary to see those startling jewels. Her nervous hands located the small, terry cloth penguin.

She pressed the animal to her face and began crying, long, quiet sobs muffled in the toy's body. The acceptance of the man's existence came with the crushing knowledge that she would never be able to look upon those eyes again. How could she when they were so empty at a time they should have filled with pity? She lay back down, allowing the tears of mourning to flow unhampered to her pillow.

She did not know how long this went on for, but, as the clock marked nine a.m. and her sobs stilled, she decided to rise from her bed of melancholy. The hot stream of water from the shower head helped wash away the lingering tears. The rhythm of the water pounded into her back and mind, pushing everything else away until she thought she could function again. That is when she stopped the flow, deeming herself ready to face another day.

She stepped from the miniscule stall to wrap a comforting towel around herself. It did not trouble her much, but it was odd that her room and bathroom were so devoid of personality. Usually Francesca went very far to make guests feel welcome. Still, the necessities were there, and Aingeal made full use of them, taking her time brushing her teeth and combing her hair. The routine calmed her, allowing her to sink farther into a controlled state.

She stared at her reflection. Tilting her head, she wondered at her new restraint, contemplating just how far it stretched. Concentration marked her face as she delved inside herself to pull forth her Carpathian powers. As she opened up, her telekinesis flared out, sending hair line fractures through the mirror before she could tamp them down.

In the damaged mirror, she watched as her hair slowly faded from the platinum blonde of the power surge. She smiled triumphantly, always having suspected how her magic worked and finally confirming it. Whenever one of her dual sides reigned supreme over her powers, the other immediately took advantage of the lack of struggle for her appearance. This caused her to look more like her mother when she utilized her father's power and vice versa.

The dragon began to hum its soothing song in her bloodstream, once more settling her magics. Aingeal sighed; she was going to have to get money from the bank soon, in order to pay for the damage to the mirror. She accepted that Mikhail and Raven were not going to allow her to repay for her wardrobe. Still, she could fix her blunder here; they should be going shopping today, if her vision of her gift for Skyler held true.

So, she decided to finish readying herself for the day, stepping back into her room. A large wardrobe stood in the corner, holding all of her earthly possessions. She opened it. Considering how her day started, she decided upon a darker outfit to fit her mood. She pulled out a layered, black silk skirt and a long sleeved, white shirt. She also selected a matching white and lacy set of underwear as well as a pair of flats. Glancing at the clock, she decided to go and find some breakfast while waiting for Skyler to wake up. She had been asleep for eight hours and should awaken soon.

Aingeal padded on silent feet down the stairs. The kitchen was set up on the first floor, past the living room. Before she could even make it to the bottom of the stairs, though, she perceived a stranger standing beside a playpen holding young Tamara. Aingeal froze as completely as a jungle cat eyeing its prey. She waited for the man to back away from the child he had just put down.

As Gary Jansen shifted away from his charge he felt a hand wrap around his throat and tilt his head towards his right shoulder, exposing the left side of his neck to poised fangs.

"What are you doing here?" Aingeal hissed close to the man's ear.

Gary thought death was imminent. "I-I'm protecting this child."

Aingeal shifted and Gary winced, not perceiving that she had only loosened her strangling hold. He gripped the dagger hidden at his side, alerting Aingeal to his attack. As Gary sliced the air behind him, Aingeal released his neck and jumped backwards onto the sofa, where she landed in a crouch.

Gary did not spare a glance for his attacker, going immediately for Tamara. Aingeal saw him lunge for the child, dagger still in hand. She ran forward, launching herself off of the arm of the couch. Defensively, Gary brought the knife up as she collided with him, lacerating her arm from elbow to wrist. The sight of her blood hitting the carpet in large drops sent anger swirling through Aingeal's mind.

She wrenched the dagger from his hands, overbalancing him before pushing him face first into the bloodstained carpet. She placed the point of the knife directly over the vertebrae in his neck.

"Talk. Who are you?" she demanded with a prick of his skin.

"Go to hell, Vampire." Aingeal pushed her knee harder into his back but did not deny the claim. She felt very much like her father's child, at the moment. Aingeal raised the knife high before plunging it towards Gary's heart.

Skyler screamed from the stairs. "No! Aingeal, that's Gary!"

The knife hovered threateningly over Gary's heart. Yellow eyes were half obscured by blonde hair as she turned to acknowledge Skyler. "You know him?"

Skyler nodded furiously and crossed the room to Tamara, who had been wailing unnoticed for some time. Aingeal hesitated a moment before flitting to the corner furthest away from Gary. Blood trickled down her arm but she did not tend to the slash, unwilling to try and lick her own elbow in front of the stranger.

Gary wiped Aingeal's blood from his face. He rose steadily, warily keeping an eye trained on the feral looking young woman. As Gary did not attack her again, instead, turned to help Skyler with the squalling babe, Aingeal's eyes shifted from turbulent yellow to curious green.

Aingeal was intrigued by finding yet another human amongst vampires, or Carpathians, as Aingeal reminded herself there was a difference, a choice. Secretly, she feared she had made the choice and simply could not remember the event, as she could not remember so many other things. She stared in horror at the dagger, proof, in her eyes, of her guilt. She so easily could have killed the man and not felt any remorse until after her magic settled, as it did now.

She set the blood coated knife on the coffee table with trembling hands. "I'm sorry," she whispered, eyes averted.

Aingeal escaped quickly back to her room. She went to the bathroom and locked the door so she could strip off the ruined shirt. It caught on fire in time with a flare of frustration at herself. Hastily, she shoved it in the sink and turned the faucet on, extinguishing the flames. She wrung the shirt out and tossed it into the trashcan with a wet "thwap," replacing the shirt with her arm beneath the spigot.

Streams of diluted red trickled down the drain. The wound was already partially healed, but Aingeal did her best to seal it with the healing agent in her saliva. Once finished, she stared into the mirror that so faithfully reflected her fragmented visage.

She gave up searching its depths to find a replacement garment. Deciding her day had gotten no better since awakening, she plucked a loose, black shirt from the depths of her closet. When she was once more dressed, Aingeal paced around the room, unwilling to venture forth anymore.

* * *

Dominic's heart began to pump, irregular beat after irregular beat. His body was alive with the pain of his injuries but finally free of the toxin that had filled Razvan's blood. Heavy manacles kept him chained to the wall of a room full of globes. The insides of the cuffs were lined with barbs, making even the slightest movement agonizing. Still, he dutifully tried to remove the restraints before being stopped by blood loss from his other reopening wounds. 

"You're awake!" called a sickly sweet voice with glee.

Dominic turned his head to study the originator of the voice, a newly turned vampiress. She was the most beautiful and deranged woman Dominic had ever laid eyes upon.

"It appears so," he answered civilly. "But is this any way to treat a guest?" He jingled the chains to indicate his meaning and turned his hypnotic voice on her. "Why do you not come remove my manacles?"

The compulsion made her stumble forward a step, but Dominic was weak, as was the command.

"I don't think so." She smiled with razor sharp teeth. "That wasn't very nice of you, and I was going to make introductions and everything."

She walked to stand just in front of him and raked her claws down his stomach, tearing through shirt and skin. "Still, this is my favorite part."

The vampiress pulled many weapons of torture from a shelf next to him. After ripping the clothing from his body, she fired up a blow torch. Dominic shut out the pain and her voice, barely understanding as she told him her name.

"I'm Maris…"

* * *

Gregori lay next to Savannah, contemplating, as he often did when the sun was high and he had nothing else to do besides rest. Lately, the prospect of having twin girls had caused him to lie awake more often. Aingeal's exhortation about the twins had worsened his insomnia as well. At the moment, he was examining his daughters. They seemed inexplicably weaker, as if they were not getting enough nutrients, even though Savannah was feeding three times a day now. 

Gregori was anxious. With a will honed by centuries, though, he shut down his heart and lungs to return to sleep, knowing he could help no one without proper rest. Just as sleep claimed him, he sensed something, perhaps an unseen parasite, dart through Savannah's womb…

* * *

As always when she was alone and without a task, Aingeal tried to call up a vision of Gregori's daughters. Except they were not there. She searched for hours, but instead of finding an empty cradle, as before, Aingeal found only carnage. 

_The body of Slavica and her family lay in the main hall of the inn. Red tides fanning out from their mangled bodies. Aingeal ran far away, although unable to escape the vision entirely. Instead, she ran to the Prince's home, where the evidence of violence was repeated. Mikhail and Raven lay motionless, stakes through their hearts, garlic in their mouths._

_As if in a nightmare, Aingeal went from house to house only to find devastation at every door. Gregori's house was the only one untouched. Some omniscient knowledge pervaded her mind, and she knew it was no hopeful sign. _

_Savannah had died before the tide of violence had crashed._

_Gregori had followed after._

_Aingeal now made her way slowly to Francesca and Gabriel's house, afraid to look but unable to resist. The front door was in splinters all over the living room; both vampires and men had been here._

_She walked in a daze down to the underground chamber where Francesca and Gabriel slept, running her hand along the frigid stone of the wall as she went along. They had tried to crawl away. In the middle of the day, they had forced their uncooperative bodies into action to try and save their children. They were on the threshold of the door, heads separated from their bodies._

_Aingeal flew from the room and up the stairs, unable to stand not knowing the fate of Skyler and Tamara. Gary lay sprawled on the steps. She simply bounded over him in her quest for the girls. Skyler's bedroom door was slightly ajar, and gulping sounds were emanating from within._

_She pushed the door open wider, cringing in horror as it bumped against the limp and discarded body of little Tamara. She closed her eyes but could not stop from moving forward or continuing to see the vision._

_A blonde woman held Skyler to her as if in an embrace. Only, Skyler's head lolled on her shoulder, a deathly pallor coloring her. The vampiress dropped Skyler on the bed and turned…_

"Aingeal?" Francesca called before entering the room. Aingeal snapped from her vision before being able to see the woman's face. She jumped as Francesca slowly entered the room. Francesca repressed a shudder as she witnessed Aingeal's appearance lightening from the darker look of her father.

"Yes?" Aingeal called to her weakly.

Francesca frowned at the queer expression on Aingeal's face. "Are you alright? I heard about the incident with Gary. I'm so sorry, we honestly did not even consider it might be a problem. That's why we didn't think to tell you about him watching Tamara."

Aingeal realized Francesca mistook her moody look for concern over the affair with Gary. She decided not to disillusion her. After all, she had not missed Francesca's slight ripple of unease upon seeing her.

"What are we doing today?" she asked to change the subject, already knowing the answer.

"I thought we could go shopping for the birthday party. We could get you a present for Skyler and let you pick some things out for your room here."

"I'm leaving tomorrow, though," Aingeal stated quizzically.

Francesca smiled. "You are always welcome in our home. Besides, you will have to come visit Skyler when we come back to the Carpathian mountains."

"You are leaving?" Aingeal gaped.

Francesca was shocked; she went to sit on the bed with the teen. "I thought you understood that. We don't live here; our home is in France, and, after the party, we are leaving to return there. You are, of course, still welcome to come with us."

Aingeal hesitated, torn between wanting to be close to her friend and needing to do what was right for her. "I don't know. I may eventually purchase a house there, but I think, for now, I will stay in the Carpathian mountains. Plus, I definitely cannot intrude upon the new home you've made for Skyler. I'm just a bad memory of a dark past."

Francesca understood the selflessness behind the refusal. She wanted Skyler to have a chance at normalcy, as well. The woman nodded. "Still, we will visit here as often as possible, and we should outfit this room properly."

Aingeal smiled, a small quirk of the lips.

"I know you enjoy music; is there an instrument you play?"  
"Yes," Aingeal smiled genuinely at this mention. "I used to have a Gemeinhardt flute. It was beautiful, a 23SS model, pure silver with gold springs. I couldn't take it with me when I had to leave, though." She frowned. "There were men who were convinced I was a vampire. I think Arturo sent them after me when I caused him to become a vampire. Still…I've always wanted to get an open holed flute."

It saddened Francesca that even the child's happiest memories were tainted. "I know very little about instruments, but we could always decorate the room in a musical theme. We have to leave before the stores close, however."

Aingeal walked to the wardrobe to remove a large coat. "I'm ready."

They walked down the stairs to discover Gabriel and the other two girls already waiting for them.

"Are you coming too?" Aingeal questioned Gabriel.

"I confess. Shopping for beautiful women is my weakness."

Francesca smiled and shoved playfully at her lifemate's arm. "What he means is he felt he had to come along to protect the helpless women."

Gabriel looked scandalized. "Not true. Shopping does, after all, have so many unexpected benefits…" He trailed off as if sharing some secret memory with Francesca. He smiled devilishly and Francesca shoved him again.

"I think we're ready to leave now. Let's go get in the car," said Francesca.

The sun was fading in the sky as they pulled out of the garage, heading for the largest shopping center in the immediate area. It took a little under an hour for them to arrive, by which time the winter sun was beginning to set.

As the last rays shone, Dimitri rose to streak after them. He had not visited Skyler since helping to rescue Aingeal, but he had been watching over her. There was, however, a reason for his marked absence. Over the last few days, the beast inside had risen dangerously close to the surface. Dimitri assumed it was Skyler's presence continuing to take its toll on him. He would have to leave as quickly as possible tomorrow, after Skyler and Aingeal's combined party.

Today, though, he continued his role of protector, dutifully watching over the family. He stayed far enough away as to be undetectable in the body of the wolf.

Gabriel held the door open to allow the women to enter the mall ahead of him. He cast a glance over his shoulder to the barely visible woods. He did not sense Dimitri there, but he suspected the male would be unable to resist safeguarding Skyler. Gabriel released the door as soon as they were all safely inside the store.

He took Tamara from his lifemate so Francesca could lead their little group. She immediately headed for the home décor section. Several mock rooms were set up in the shop, and everyone took their time looking around. Aingeal found one in particular she liked, a darker, Grecian style room. Her favorite pieces were the black Recamier, or Grecian couch, and a white bookcase made of columns.

An overly helpful salesperson approached her. "This collection has the combined qualities of being both beautiful and affordable. It's only $3,120 with taxes. That breaks down to a $312 down payment with monthly payments of only about $120."

Aingeal interrupted the woman before she could go into any greater detail. "If I made the down payment today, could you hold it here for me and deliver it at a later date?"

"We certainly can!" It was clear the woman worked on commission. "I'll just get the paperwork…"

"Wait." Aingeal once more put a stop to her enthusiasm. "I have to go get some money first."

The saleswoman's exuberant smile wilted, as if she did not quite believe her. "I'll be at the front desk when you come back."

Aingeal quirked an eyebrow as her super hearing picked up the woman's mutterings. "Teens…always wasting my time…" She did not stay still to listen, though, racing off to find one of her companions. She ran into Francesca and Gabriel first, catching them kissing in one of the bedroom models.

"Um, guys?" she embarrassedly broke up the duo. They came apart, grinning like idiots.

"Yes?" they answered.

"I need to find an ATM; I'm going to put a down payment on a bedroom set for when I get my own place."

Gabriel led her to one of the machines conveniently placed throughout the mall. Aingeal had placed her money in a local bank the moment she had stepped foot off the plane. For the first time, she would get to use her new ATM card.

She withdrew four hundred dollars, enough for the down payment and a new mirror for the bathroom. "Here," she tried to hand some of the money to Gabriel. "I accidentally broke your mirror earlier."

He gently pushed her hand aside. "That is very responsible of you, but we do not need money to fix it." When she looked as if she might ask for clarification, Gabriel quickly responded, "I will show you what I mean when we return. For now, let us go purchase your new bedroom. Do not forget, though, that Francesca will expect you to both pick out and allow us to pay for items to fill your room at our home."

"Oh yeah, I guess I should find a clock or something," said Aingeal as they once more entered the home décor shop. As it turned out, Francesca had found some items herself. Still, Aingeal felt obligated to contribute to her room; so, she picked out an antique alarm clock and a reading lamp. She added them to Francesca's pile at the front counter before approaching the salesperson.

"I would like to place a down payment on the Grecian bedroom, now."

The oily smile returned to the woman's face as she had Aingeal fill out the proper paperwork and gave her the number to contact when she was ready for delivery. Aingeal quickly took the number and receipt from the her hand. The salesperson unnerved her, and she left that particular shop as soon as possible.

The woman's father had phoned as soon as Aingeal's card had been used. She returned the call. "She's leaving my shop, now."

"Keep an eye on her until the team can arrive," responded a twisted voice.

"She wasn't alone. There was a couple and they had a baby and another teenager," she informed him.

"More vampires. We'll send the recon team for today; make sure they don't leave before we can tag them."

The woman hesitated, unwilling to contradict her father. "Sir, I don't think her companions were vampires. The baby was clearly the couple's, and I thought they were incapable of having children. And the other girl, she seemed too innocent; I can believe Aingeal walks with the undead, but not the other one."

"Crina," he replied angrily. "Do not be drawn in by their act. Vampires are deceptive, vile creatures. Remember what they did to your mother."

She did. Her mother had been taken away from her when she was only three, kidnapped by vampires. Her father and mother's relationship had not been one of great love, but her father had turned fanatical as a result of his ego being thwarted. The only reason she went along with it was to keep from losing him as well.

She knew true vampires existed, but the society often targeted people who were simply gifted, just as Crina was. She shook her head at the phone. "It is my field decision that the family is not a threat, that the vampire has attached to them for survival. Send recon so they can track her and terminate at a later date, _without_ harming the host family." She snapped her phone shut.

* * *

Dominic was faintly impressed with the vampiress' ability to stay active when the sun was still up. She had gone to ground late in the morning and risen early, all for the pleasure of torturing him. 

She cupped him in her hand, vainly trying to arouse him. "Hmm… Looks like I can't play that game with you. What a pity, all of the other men were so much fun."

An electric paddle flashed to his skin, giving him an electric jolt right over his heart. Dominic's muscles contracted involuntarily, and he bowed against the wall, tearing fresh gashes in his wrists and ankles as he strained against the manacles. Maris's laughter attacked him from every side as it rebounded off of the cave walls.

A vampire entered the room, sweeping Maris into an overly possessive embrace. "Are you having fun with your new toy?"

"Yes," she writhed against him.

Tertius Malinov stepped forward to Dominic. "And you, how are you enjoying our hospitality?"

Dominic's cold eyes bore into Tertius's. Maris had injected him with more of the paralytic during their earlier session. She liked to see her victims thrash, however, and had only given him enough to impede his speech and powers.

Tertius grinned, a showing of blood stained teeth. "Time for a little experiment, I think." He snapped his fingers and a woman stumbled into the room under compulsion. When she neared Tertius, she fell to the floor, begging for his attentions.

The sight revolted some small part of Dominic, but the temptation of the woman had him riveted. He forced his eyes shut, but could not block out the scent of her blood as Tertius broke the skin on her throat. Fangs exploded in his mouth. Tertius pushed the woman forward to Dominic, blood coursing from her neck onto his body as she pressed against him.

Centuries of honor were lost in that one moment. The beast inside of him broke free to the surface, silencing the voice that spoke to him of his oath. His wicked teeth plunged into the woman's proffered neck. Blood flowed into him. All the while, the dragon on his hip began to burn ever more fiercely. Maris held the woman to him until she had no more blood left in her body.

The dragon on his side exploded with pain as Dominic watched the woman fall to the floor. His mind cleared of the beast that clouded his thinking. He had not realized how much blood he had taken from the woman. At the last moment, the dragon had saved him from vampirism, but not in time to spare his victim. Maris and Tertius, however, believed him to be one of their kind.

"Welcome, Brother," Tertius greeted him anew. "Maris, those chains are unnecessary now that he is one of us. Remove them."

Dominic fell to the floor as Maris complied with her master's wishes. Tertius clothed Dominic and lifted him into his arms, taking him from the sphere room to a chamber below. Instead of placing him in the healing earth, however, he put Dominic on a bed.

"We will release you to the Carpathians tomorrow morning. You must not look too undamaged or they will suspect something is amiss," explained Tertius.

He eyed Dominic gloatingly. "Still, our plan has worked well, has it not? We turned you, a Dragonseeker, so quickly. The others will not stand, even so long as you did."

Tertius left the room. Once more, Dominic shut down his heart and lungs, his last thought for warning his people of Razvan's plot and the young woman at the center of it…


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Hey guys, I worked as much as I could and as fast as I could on this chapter. I hope you like it!

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**6**

Dominic's skin burned and his eyes streamed in the early morning light. As close as the parasites were bringing him to vampirism, he could not stand this mild amount of exposure. Even Maris was faring far better than he as she supported him through the forest.

"Why are you so different from other vampires?" he asked, his voice still hoarse.

She glanced at him sideways, still annoyed by her task. "My lifemate was a vampire. He converted me."

Dominic understood. It was not the conversion that had deranged her but the torture she must have suffered at his hands.

"I do not think Tertius is your lifemate." He breathed through the pain. "Who was he?"

Maris was becoming ever more irate. "Maxim Malinov," she snapped.

Dominic growled at the familiar name of his rival. "And it is his daughter that is the central of this plan I must execute?"

"No, it is _our _daughter who will bring about the ruin of the Carpathians." Maris smiled with a twisted sense of pride. "And then she will return to her people, a full vampire."

He shook his head. "That is impossible. Vampires cannot reproduce."

"Unless they find their lifemates." Maris's smile turned bitter. "I will never again have another child. Your people made sure of that when they murdered my husband, at least now we've taken you from them. But you're boring me now."

She stabbed a syringe into his neck. "It's really better if you don't talk too much while you execute your part. Remember, guide the disease and manipulate the humans. Shouldn't be too hard."

Dominic rolled his eyes as the paralytic took effect. He was rapidly becoming tired of this whole affair.

* * *

Aingeal nervously toyed with the small silver package in her hands. She had found the locket, as planned, along with a few other things for her room. Among the other items were a few posters for a band Skyler had let her listen to and a TV with a built DVD and VHS player. They had watched Aingeal's new movies later than they should have, as they had to get up extremely early to accommodate the Carpathian's party schedule. 

After Skyler had trotted off to bed, Aingeal had stayed up even longer, unable to sleep as she contemplated the day ahead. She had gotten all the way through The Count of Monte Cristo two times. Still, she was unable to enter into the ever growing throng of party guests. Men and women were dispersed through what seemed like a horde of children. She had never seen so many people without being on a stage, an invisible barrier between her and the mercurial beings.

She held her breath to keep her courage from escaping and opened the door. Skyler almost bashed her in the face, her hand poised to knock on the absent wood.

"Oh, you're coming down," greeted Skyler.

Aingeal quirked a suspicious eyebrow at her friend. "Yes."

"Well let's go then!" Skyler walked halfway down the stairs with Aingeal before exclaiming, "Oh! I meant to get something from my room. You go on without me."

Aingeal crossed her arms. "I'll just wait here for you."

"Al-alright," replied Skyler. She ran back up the stairs. It took some time, but Aingeal waited patiently where she stood, unwilling to face the large mass of people alone. Skyler finally returned, carrying a lavender wrapped box similar to the one in Aingeal's hand.

"Here, I got you a present as well." She tried to foist the small and silvery box upon her friend.

Skyler held up her hands. "You can't give that to me now. We're going to open presents later; we'll just put these boxes with the other piles."

"Piles?" Aingeal responded faintly.

"Yes, tons of them. So let's go before Joseph sets them on fire or something."

Aingeal trailed behind her friend to the bottom of the stairs, where she stopped dead in her tracks. As if in a nightmare, every pair of eyes was turned to them. Then someone began to sing.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you…"

Color flooded Aingeal's face. This was horrible. As the song faded, Gabriel emerged with a very large cake holding thirty-five candles, seventeen for Skyler, eighteen for Aingeal.

"Make a wish," smiled Francesca, camera in hand. Aingeal wished she could turn invisible.

She caught on a second late to what was actually happening and blew the candles out a moment after Skyler, feeling like a fool. As Gabriel led the procession into the kitchen to hand out the pieces, Aingeal tried to sneak away. Unfortunately for her, Gregori and Savannah blocked the path back to her room and safety.

"It's really not so bad being in the center of attention," comforted Savannah, guessing the teen's intent. She bumped her hip against Gregori's. "He made it through alive."

Aingeal sighed, thwarted, and questioned Savannah without any real interest. "What did he make it through?"

The paradox of the deviousness smile alighting such a seraphic face took its toll on Aingeal. She gaped as Savannah explained despite Gregori's warning growl. "He took on the role of Santa Clause very recently, during our Christmas celebration."

"Do not listen to her." Gregori attempted to steer Savannah away from the young woman. "The pregnancy tires her."

A small, quivering face blocked their exit much as he had put a stop to Aingeal's escape moments before. "That wasn't the real Santa Clause? But _you said, _Savannah…" Tears began to spill from the young boy's eyes.

"It _was _the real Santa, Jase," she comforted.

"How…could…it be…when it…was…Gregori?" replied the youngest of Falcon and Sara's boys.

Savannah crouched down to his eye level, motioning him forward conspiratorially. "Can you keep a secret?"

The child nodded pathetically.

"Gregori _is _the real Santa Clause!" Savannah confided.

"What?!" erupted Gregori. The boy seemed to think the same thing as he glanced disbelievingly up at Gregori, his eyes misting over once more. "Well… I mean, Savannah you really should not bandy that information about. You never know who might try and take extra presents if they found out. So don't tell anyone, alright?"

Jase nodded, a small, boyish smile completely erasing the tears of seconds past. Gregori patted him on the head and he immediately ran off, presumably to break his promise as soon as humanly possible.

Gregori turned on his lifemate. "Where is your father? All of this can be laid at his feet. When I find him…" He trailed off, his eyes smoldering with diabolical plans.

"You _cannot_ strangle him, Gregori," was Savannah's response along with a toss of her hair.

Aingeal burst out laughing. "I think this party will be fun after all."

Francesca came over, balancing baby Tamara on one hip and a plate in the opposite hand. She handed the dessert over to Aingeal. "When everyone is through with the cake we'll open presents."

Aingeal sat on a chair obscured from everyone's vision by the table full of presents beside it. For a while, she simply sat and nibbled on her cake; it was quite good. She watched curiously as Skyler walked in the front door, her cheeks rosy from the cold. Skyler walked back out after a few seconds of talking to Byron, however, and Aingeal decided to follow. She opened the door after Skyler and…was immediately hit in the face with a snowball.

"Oh crap, I'm sorry! Skyler, you were supposed to get Byron to come out, not her," apologized and admonished Josef in turn. Aingeal backed into the door as Josef tried to brush the snow from her face, except it was not there. Byron stood in the doorway and Aingeal knocked into him instead.

Byron steadied the girl and stopped his nephew's continued harassment. "What are you doing to the poor girl?"

Josef, realizing who was in the doorway, shouted. "Get him!" Snowballs darted forth from the gathered children's hands. Inadvertently, Aingeal became a snow shield for Byron as most of the slushy spheres pelted her instead.

Aingeal shook with annoyance and cold. Her eyes glowed yellow, frightening Josef farther away from her an instant before she pounced, plowing him into a snowdrift. Erupting with laughter, Byron watched as mayhem unfolded around him, at least until Travis smacked _him _in the face with a snowball. He joined the fray at that point.

The noise drew more members from the house, turning a simple tussle into an epic snowball fight. The males formed one side and the women came to the aid of the children. The men began blasting the little snow forts with high speed snowballs as the women and children huddled behind them, throwing their own ammunition up and over the sides.

"It is _so _time to stop fighting fair," Natalya told her team members, wiggling her eyebrows at Sara. "Make sure the children aren't looking."

"Oh my god, Natalya!" exclaimed Sara before using her powers to enlarge the snow forts, ensuring the young ones would have no chance to witness Natalya's next move. Natalya grinned wickedly before disappearing from behind the protective barrier. Instantaneously, she appeared right in front of Vikirnoff…without her clothes on.

Vikirnoff gaped at her before exploding into action, dropping his snowballs and pulling her to him. Natalya dissolved into mist, Vikirnoff trailing behind her to keep her from trying that particular trick again. They both reappeared behind the snow barrier, the unlucky Joseph still frozen in his tracks by Vikirnoff's death glare.

When the children saw Vikirnoff return with Natalya, they raised their snowballs in preparation to pelt him. Vikirnoff raised his hands in a show of innocence. "I'm switching sides."

The women behind the now singular barricade laughed uproariously at him. Everyone soon returned to the game, however, Vikirnoff now taking a prime role in the men's defeat. He and Natalya would creep forth in tiger form, waiting to bowl their enemies over. Natalya ended up pushing Mikhail into his own stockpile of ammunition.

Antonietta was the mastermind behind the true plan for victory, however. She put a hand out to stop Vikirnoff who had bounded behind the defenses just as some very loud snowballs crashed into the barrier.

He was panting. "Do you need something?"

Antonietta smiled her mysterious smile. "Can you get the children up into the trees of the clearing over there without the men seeing?"

"Yes," he smiled, guessing a magnificent plan was in order.

It took a moment to organize, but soon the children were resting in the treetops with piles of snowballs at their sides. Copies of them stayed behind to run into the field at Antonietta's command. With her signal, the women and "children" bounded forth, scattering in every direction. The men broke up, going after their individual lifemates as planned.

Antonietta stumbled and fell, Byron sweeping forth to catch her. At the last moment, however, she changed her form into that of a jaguar, pinning her husband to the ground.

She nuzzled his face. _Do you give up?_

Byron jerked free and began to run. He got pretty far before a several hundred pound tiger Vikirnoff jumped on his back. He just sat there too, his heavy butt making it impossible for Byron to escape.

_Join the dark side. _Vikirnoff quoted Star Wars.

"That woman of yours has certainly twisted your mind," was Byron's only response.

_Do you want to end up with the other difficult ones? _Vikirnoff motioned with his head to the bunch tied beneath a tree. It included Lucian and Nicolae, their lifemates having gotten the better of them, as well as Josef, oddly enough, as he had been taken surprise by Aingeal.

Byron gave up. "I join your side."

Soon enough, the only men left standing in defiance were Gregori and Mikhail, who were being carefully herded to the clearing where the children waited. Raven and Savannah worked in concert, Savannah deflecting and Raven firing snowballs as rapidly as possible. The two men were back to back as the others began to form a circle around them.

"Well, it doesn't do to dwell on the losing side," were Gregori's only words as he left Mikhail to his fate. The children sprung into action, launching snowball after snowball until Mikhail was a pile of snow in the middle of a large circle of people.

He raised his hands. "Alright, I'm dead already." Everyone whooped with glee.

* * *

Dimitri had stayed behind in the house as the others had run outside to join in the game. He had contemplated many times approaching Skyler to deliver his present, a stuffed wolf with black fur and blue eyes. Each time his eyes had strayed to his lifemate, however, the beast had risen uncontrollably. He had stayed in the shadows to prevent her seeing his darker side, now his chance was gone. He did not understand what was happening to trigger his violent instincts, especially with Skyler so near and obviously not in danger. 

_She is in danger every moment she is not bound to you, _whispered an insidious voice inside of his head

He closed his eyes, squeezing the small wolf between his hands. When he had successfully banished the voice, he glided smoothly up the stairs, following Skyler's scent to her bedroom. Placing the stuffed animal on her pillow, he took a sheet of paper and a pen from the desk to leave a note alongside his gift. He explained why he was leaving, baring his soul to his other half in a confession of the darkness rising inside of him, possibly uncontrollable. He treasured her safety, valued it higher than his honor and the lives he would steal when he turned vampire.

He streaked away, leaving his soul behind. Every last shard of his sanity lay trapped in his letter, kept safeguarded by Skyler's wolf.

* * *

"Alright, time to go back in side for presents!" called Sara to the younger members of the group. Little hands pushed Aingeal and Skyler forward to the house. 

Gregori created a large and colorful piñata stick and poked Mikhail in the side. "You know there is a game I think we should teach the children later. Apparently, you hit a jackass with a bright stick until he gives you candy."

Mikhail grinned disbelievingly as Gregori helped him to his feet. "You would not dare."

Gregori scowled. "The children are following me around. They seem to think I'm 'the real Santa.'"

Mikhail laughed hysterically; Gregori responded with a solid whack of the stick. By the time the adults had returned to the house, the children had already "helped" Skyler and Aingeal unwrap their presents. The entire pile was gone and they were all clamoring for Aingeal to let them play the game she had received along with a game station and two plastic guitar controllers.

Joshua hooked it up to the TV and challenged her to battle. The small child decimated her, but once she got the hang of it she was fairly good. A few more turns passed and Aingeal was playing on expert level when Josef stepped forward. He was the undisputed champion of videogames.

He selected the most difficult song of the level and they began, fingers flying up and down the buttons of the controller. The points swung wildly back and forth, one moment in Josef's favor, the next in Aingeal's. Sweat poured as they neared the end of the song.

"Player two wins," announced the game.

Everyone was silent. Aingeal had just barely defeated Joseph, their king of games.

"It's about time someone beat him," exclaimed Byron. "Now he might not be so obsessed with them."

Josef smiled wickedly at his uncle. "Fat chance."

They both removed the plastic guitars and passed them on to the others waiting for a turn. Aingeal cleared the couch off to make room to sit down. Under Skyler's half opened box was the little stuffed penguin Aingeal had been sleeping with. Glancing into the corner where Skyler sat with Tamara, she smiled, noticing that Skyler had managed to open her present herself and was now wearing the locket.

Josef squeezed himself in-between Aingeal and the gifts, probably crushing something. "You play really well."

"Thanks," said Aingeal.

"Still, there was that one section where you have to…" he moved his hands around as if holding a plastic guitar. Aingeal stared at him as if he were mad and burst out laughing.

"Hey!" he said playfully. "I'm trying to flirt here, and I don't think you even notice."

That dampened her mood. "Doesn't that upset your lifemate?"

"I don't have a lifemate," replied Josef, moving closer than necessary even on the overcrowded couch. He leaned forward…

Aingeal could feel Josef's emotions, pressed as tight as he was. He did not think she was his lifemate, just that she was pretty, and he desperately wanted a kiss. She stilled, no longer trying to retreat as Josef's emotions replaced her own, creating a need to provide for him. The emotions and pure life emanating from Josef were intoxicating. His essence brushing all her senses allowed her to see the ghost of a vision from his past.

_Josef stood in a beautiful courtyard, a half finished painting before him. The piece was amazing even at this stage._

She halted Josef's advance with a palm placed on his shoulder, snapping her eyes to the window as if her name had been called.

* * *

The paralytic wore off slowly. Each minute ticked by, taking the sun higher in the sky and bringing more pain to Dominic's already ravaged body. He bent his iron will to the task of forcing his leaden limbs to function. Each muscle awakened until he could finally stand. 

As quickly as possible, he made his way towards Gabriel's home where he knew a birthday celebration was being held. If he made it in time, they may have a chance to cure the plague Razvan was spreading through his people, a plague _Aingeal _was spreading. Natalya had begun the research, but Razvan had spent years perfecting it to fit his purpose. He had scarred the land with experiments, making it unfit for use by Carpathians. Now, it was ready to be put to use turning them into the very creature they hunted, the vampire.

Dominic hurried to save his people, knowing with every second that passed Aingeal was spreading more of the parasite amongst them. Through touch and blood, she was fulfilling her evil purpose. Dominic reached once more, trying to contact his people through the common mental path, uncaring that the vampires would hear. They would not have a chance to discover his treachery, though, as the paralytic worked only too well.

He fell to a knee, momentarily stunned as the drug deluged his veins. The snow melted as blood fell at his feet. He was dying, his natural healing abilities unable to function in the face of the parasites. Not only that, his great strength was drained so completely he was unable to heal himself in the Carpathian manner. He need a healer, his healer.

He lurched forward into action. He would save her, the healer that made him feel some semblance of peace, and punish this Aingeal, the destroyer of his world. He could do no other; it was his duty to his Prince and his people. This thought spurred him on to greater speeds, pumping his blood out to bathe the ground.

He was so close, his heart laboring to get blood to his starving muscles and succeeding in only weakening him further. Suddenly, his feet went out from under him. His inability to regulate his body temperature was taking its toll in the snowy environment; he could not feel anything from his calves down. The chill feeling still left in his other muscles contrasted dramatically with the severe burns on his inner thighs. It felt as if Maris were tormenting him anew with her blowtorch.

He lay down, slowing his heart to keep the remaining blood inside of his body for as long as it would take to deliver his message. Straining his senses, he searched for some sign of his people. He tried repeatedly to call out on the common mental path, each time shut down by the same paralyzing and painful effect. Every moment he lost strength, the unnatural parasite dwelling within him continuing to attack a body in tatters and robbed of proper defense.

His tenuous grip on his soul continued to slip until voices, faint even to his advanced hearing, jerked his awareness to the realm of the living.

"Aingeal!" a voice whispered urgently. "Josef is following us."

Dominic narrowed his eyes upon hearing that cursed name, the identity of the ruin of his people. Nothing happened for a few minutes more until he suddenly heard a young man yell. Dominic lurched, trying to reach the male.

Laughter rang out into the air. "Nicely done, Skyler!"

Dominic stilled, colors exploding into life right before his eyes. As emotion followed, Dominic began to appreciate the tragic irony of his situation.

His lifemate was his enemy.

The thought of finding his lifemate in such a way overwhelmed him, and soon the voices retreated, leaving him frozen and alone. Emotions were ugly ghouls dwelling inside him; for the first time, he felt absolute despair at the prospect of failing his people and a sorrow that sang in his bones when he contemplated never seeing his lifemate. He realized she must have been his healer, memories of small hands pulling a slow and burning death from his skin. His breathing was peaceful as these last thoughts comforted him in his dying.

_Aingeal… _He thought to himself, the word suddenly sweeter than life.

* * *

Aingeal leapt forward, her scream for the healer silencing everyone in the room. "GREGORI!" 

She kept running, not stopping to wait for Gregori or even to locate a coat before heading out into the freezing cold of the morning. Her feet attempted to trip her on rocks and roots as she blazoned towards her goal. It felt as if she could barely breathe, her heart refusing to move blood throughout her system. But she could not stop, her destination forever lying just over the next hill or the next, never seeming to get any closer.

Suddenly she was there, standing before the broken and unrecognizable form of Dominic. The last beat of his heart stuttered forth and she fell to her knees, hands stretched outward in an effort to find a safe place to touch him. The healers were on their way, too late to be of any use. She watched as the thread of his life unraveled into death. She wept tears of sorrow, of rage, of power. Glowing a fierce beacon of silver, she pillowed her head on his chest, grasping his life and tying it to her own. Her spirit followed Dominic down_ En Puwe, _the tree of life, as the healers made it to the pair.

Francesca tried to lift Aingeal from the gravely injured man but was stopped short by a silver chain connecting Dominic's left wrist with the girl's right wrist. Francesca tried to tear the bracelets apart but was stopped by a shake of Gregori's head; he had noted the similarities between the link and the metallic silver color of the girl's hair. Instead, he urged the healers to work on the badly damaged body lying before them.

Upon entrance, they were swarmed with the parasites feasting on Dominic. The tiny creatures were trying to drive them out. Francesca, Gregori, and Shea blasted as many as possible with their healing light, but there were always hordes more ready to take the place of the ones they destroyed. Progress was very slow and they simply did not have the time to wait to restart Dominic's heart when it had been so unwillingly shut down.

Shea dropped out of the battle to fall back into her own body. She ripped open the front of Dominic's shirt to reveal the numerous wounds marring his torso. As she attempted to forcefully restart normal palpitations, she was once more thwarted by the self-aware parasites. Shea did not hesitate, plunging her hand in to massage his heart back to life as she had done so many times before with human patients. This time, however, she had to break through skin and bone with her bare hand to get to the decrepit organ. She created a rhythm, coaxing the valves into functioning, buying the time necessary for the other healers to make it to the heart and lungs.

As Shea pumped Dominic's heart, she looked at her surroundings. They had gotten far away from Gabriel's house, too far to return with Dominic in this state, and they would need shelter very soon.

_Jacques, _she called out to her lifemate. _We need Syndil and a place to move this bunch, quick._

He responded immediately with the help she needed. _Mikhail is coming with us to locate a cabin he believes is very near to your location. _

She waited. The trio finally arrived to move the healers and their patient to the little hut Mikhail had spoken of. Shea was able to free her hand only when they had settled in the cabin and Gregori and Francesca felt confident they could both regulate its rhythm and fight of the attackers in Dominic's blood. From now on, they could only wait as Aingeal ventured to the roots of the tree of life. The task may well be impossible as she had not entered the realm of the dead with the aid of The Greater Healing Chant. Essentially, she was stumbling around in an unknown world without guidance and no connection to Dominic that the others knew of.

With so little personal attachment to the man, would Aingeal be willing to face the monster the chant spoke of, the one which held Dominic's soul?


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Hey guys, sorry this chapter is a bit late. I was sick all of last week so I wrote most of this the day I felt better. I hope you like it! (subliminal messaging Review, Review, Review!)**

**7**

Aingeal gazed wide eyed at the landscape around her. The gray shadows of the land danced like the arms of flames, beckoning her into their grasp. For the first time, she gave in, allowing her curiosity for the land to pull her in. Death had always held a morbid fascination for her, but she had resisted its pull until now. After setting eyes upon her goal, she was unsure she could leave it behind.

Her ties to Skyler were like spider webs trying to hold back a hurricane. However, a much stronger connection pulled at her, drawing her from the borderland of life and death farther down _En Puwe_. She allowed this thread to guide her, recognizing the feel of Dominic it carried. Somewhere near the roots of the tree he lay, waiting to pass fully into the next life.

Here in death, Aingeal's memories returned to her, granting her the knowledge of _en puwe _she had lost. She stopped in her tracks as she realized she would have to face the greedy keeper of the souls alone. It was foolhardy to have entered alone, without the aid of the Greater Healing Chant. Now she must stand before a monster whom an entire group of chanters could barely defeat.

She shivered but slowly resumed her travel, instinctually understanding the folly of standing solitary in one place for too great a time. Very nearly distracted by her returning memories, Aingeal worked furiously to invent some plan that would allow her to pull Dominic from death's clutches. Surely, there had been those who traveled here without the help of a tribe of people to strengthen them. Memories of Maris staggered her for a moment.

A shadow flickered in the ever-growing thicket of trees lining her path, and she snapped her eyes to the movement. Others were here in the forest, their ghostly threads of life cut short and waving, now, in the winds of death. One such banner caught her attention, pulling her to the left side of the path. She was unsure why she must follow this one thread, only too recognizable as her father's. The only explanation she could think of was that she was stunned to find Maxim Malinov, the most evil man she had ever known, dead.

"Perhaps, in death, he has found the missing piece of his soul…"

Aingeal's foot was but a scant inch away from crossing the divide between the forest and the road when a hand clasped her shoulder. "Death changes only the living, young one."

Aingeal spun around warily to fall into a protective crouch in the face of the stranger. The woman held her hands up in a peaceful manner, her eyes kind and framed by long and waving black hair. Fear once more triggered the natural knowledge lying dormant in Aingeal. Suddenly, the land appeared in color, the woman's tapestry of life bursting into view before Aingeal's keen eyes.

"Sarantha Dubrinsky."

The woman nodded, though it had not been a question. "This pathway appears very rarely. Do you have some sort of dominion here in death?"

"Yes," Aingeal replied, not questioning the source of this knowledge.

"You look like her."

"Who? And what were you saying about death changing the living?"

Sarantha's answer to the first question was only a smile. "Death is unchanging and so are the dead. That rule is not often broken; your father will not have accepted his guilt as of yet."

Worried surprise flitted across Aingeal's features. "He can though. If I help him, he could accept his blame and move on to the afterlife. That's what you're talking about happening, right?"

Aingeal had straightened from her defensive position at this point, and Sarantha took her hands worriedly. "It is not your burden to bear. It is the responsibility of your mother and father to look after their souls. You will have enough to clean up back in your realm due to them; do not add more in this one."

Aingeal struggled to remove her hands from Sarantha's grip as the woman looked on with the patience of one long dead. As the teen thrashed, her life force left her body to flow into Sarantha. Aingeal fell to her knees in weakness.

"Child, do you see what could happen in the hands of your father, one who would not hesitate to steal away your life?" Sarantha picked the girl up to cradle her in her arms as she carried her along the path. "We, in death, have powers you do not yet know how to fight. Neither of us can afford for you to tarry long enough to learn them. I will take you to the border of true death, and then I will return to you your essence."

Aingeal felt chilled and insubstantial in Sarantha's arms. She did not struggle, however, as she had learned the lesson the woman had had no time to teach in a kinder way. Her father would not have stopped before she had succumbed to death.

They found the boundaries quickly, where the forest gave way to desert. Warmth flooded back into Aingeal as Sarantha placed her on her feet. In a whisper, Aingeal thanked her.

Sarantha gave her a rather sad smile. "Death offers us unlimited knowledge; sometimes we forget that it is best to leave some questions unanswered. Still, I wish you luck on your journey."

Without another word, Sarantha once more disappeared into the forest. Aingeal turned her back to the way she had come in order to survey the landscape before her. There was but a single tree marring the blank canvas before her. So, she headed towards it, mentally calculating how she might be able to barter with the demon holding Dominic's soul. Beneath the tree, the great and fiery monster lounged, carefully drawing in Dominic's connection to life, the thread that passed through Aingeal and up the tree of life. Dominic's form was opaque, for now, but growing stronger with every pull of the demon.

"Mamaehut," Aingeal called, a strange new power filling her voice as it uncovered the creature's true name. "Why do you insist on taking this one into death when I desire him in life?"

The being's reaction startled her, but she gave no response as he bowed. "Majesty, I am only performing my humble task. If you command it, I will release his soul unto you."

"I do command it."

Mamaehut cast his eyes upwards as though she had said something not quite what he expected. He straightened slightly from his obsequious stance and did not drop his eyes from her face again. His tone was less formal when he addressed her again.

"What use do you have of him exactly, _majesty._" The last word was said with sarcasm.

The power fled from Aingeal's voice as she responded. "Please, he called out to me and I found him grievously wounded. He still lives, and so, I must return the missing part of his soul."

Mamaehut dropped all pretenses of servility and strode towards Aingeal, gripping the thread that ran from Dominic through her in his hand. He gave a cruel tug at the line and laughed as Aingeal stumbled forward a step. The knowledge of her inability to fight this monster was swept aside in a corresponding flare of rage. She walked to stand scant inches from him.

"Are you sure you would get us both?" She saw doubt in his eyes as he remembered how he had mistaken her for his master. Perhaps there was some connection he was missing. "Do you often gamble with your food source?"

Aingeal was forced to sidestep as Mamaehut swiped at her with a powerful, clawed hand. "Would you rather me take this one soul and leave you be or haunt your meals for the rest of time?"

Mamaehut readied himself to lunge at the girl but was stopped by the voice of his true master. "Mamaehut, leave now before the girl makes a promise in death that she cannot keep."

The demon disappeared instantly upon this command, leaving Aingeal to stare up into the tree for its giver. There, in the branches, lounged a woman who appeared to Aingeal to have an uncanny resemblance to her mother.

"You were dangerously close to making a pact in death, child." She dropped from the canopy of the tree to stand before Aingeal. "Make sure, in the future, it is one you have some intention of keeping."

Aingeal replied as calmly as possible, not wishing to provoke the woman before her. "I have every thought of making good my threat if I do not get what I want."

The woman's eyes fell for a moment to the thread running from Dominic to Aingeal before returning to Aingeal's eyes. She quirked a smile. "Perhaps you do. After all, you hold some resemblance to me. Perhaps it does not run only surface deep, as with your mother."

The woman saw the lack of understanding etched on her descendants face. "Come now; in death no one may hamper your memories, and you have had many visions of my sisters and myself."

Aingeal looked the woman in the eye, for the first time truly studying her features. "Lachesis?"

The woman grimaced. "Yes, the Greeks called me that." Her smile returned. "They never were able to pronounce my real name. I suppose that's lost with history as well."

"As well as what?"

"As well as everything else, of course," replied Lachesis. She continued without giving note to the odd expression on Aingeal's face. "I believe you had some intention of bartering for the return of his soul. What did you have in mind to trade?"

Aingeal replied without hesitation. "Whatever it takes."

"That's a dangerous proposition as well. Death will not be so kind if you continue to give it these opportunities…" She trailed off in thought.

"There's naught that you can give that I don't already have, but taking something dear for you to give serves just as well. You are mortal yet?"

"Yes," responded Aingeal, completely unaware of where this was going yet very knowledgeable of the fact that each moment Dominic was beginning to look more substantial.

Lachesis snapped around from where she had paced during her thinking to stare at Aingeal. "It is time, then."

This baffled Aingeal, and her tone revealed it. "Time for what?"

Lachesis became exasperated with her incomprehension. "You will _trade _me time. In return, you may have him." She pointed her impossibly sharp fingernail in Dominic's direction.

Aingeal stood, her eyes captured by Dominic's face. "How much time?"

"As long as it takes."

"Are you always so vague? Because I have other promises to keep as well." Aingeal thought of Skyler.

Lachesis laughed and blocked Aingeal's unwavering view of Dominic. "I am _Fate; _of course I'm always this vague. You're lucky I'm giving you a choice in the matter. So, decide. What is most important to you?"

Aingeal stared into the woman's cold blue eyes a long moment. Finally, Lachesis seemed to find something there hidden even to Aingeal. She went from perfect stillness to motion in a second.

Lachesis crouched over the man only half in death to whisper in his ear, unheard by Aingeal. "Consider this your wedding present."

Dominic disappeared, leaving Aingeal alone with her very great grandmother.

* * *

The tension in the room broke as Dominic came coughing back into life. He kept perfectly still as a searing heat filled his body, erasing his wounds.

Cool, earth-covered fingers pressed into the pulse on his wrist. "Dominic, are you back with us?"

He opened his mouth to reply but was stopped by his unresponsive vocal cords. He nodded his head in affirmation instead. Opening his eyes, he noted the worn look on Syndil's face as she rubbed her temples.

"You frightened us. When we found you…" She stopped as her hands removed the dirt from his skin, revealing unmarked flesh. "I don't understand. You almost died and there's not a single mark." She gently wiped the rest of the dirt from his torso as if searching for where he had hidden the damage.

Dominic searched her face in a similar manner, having expected to find Aingeal upon awakening instead of this vaguely familiar woman. There was no question, however, that she was not his lifemate. He forced his uncooperative body to move, to search for his other half.

Syndil tried to restrain the man in case he was not as recovered as he seemed, but Dominic would have none of it. He sat up, his sore body fighting him just as much as the woman. In defeat, Syndil stopped trying to push him back into the healing earth in case she should injure him herself.

Dominic did not pause to clothe himself as he spotted the only portions of Aingeal's body not covered with soil, her face and her right hand. He looked questioningly at Syndil who was rather studiously ignoring him. He immediately realized the source of her discomfort and donned some garments. With that accomplished, Syndil turned and noticed Dominic's questioning gaze. He gestured pointedly to Aingeal's hand.

"There was a chain linking the two of you when she entered death. It disappeared only seconds before you awoke."

Dominic stared worriedly down at Aingeal's face, stroking her metallic silver hair and wondering to himself why she had not also awoken. He committed every nuance of her visage to his memory, having never seen her face before. Never again would he lose her. Syndil looked on, shocked by the display. It seemed that another of the males had found his mate.

"I need to examine you," Syndil broke the silence; Dominic did not look up from Aingeal's face. "She did this to save _you. _Allow me to assist her in the only away I am able, by seeing to your welfare."

This caught Dominic's attention. He reluctantly went to lay in his former position beside Aingeal in the earth. With Barack's help, Syndil was able to shed her physical form and enter Dominic's body as nothing more than a healing light. She checked twice, yet every one of his wounds, including the one Shea had been forced to make, was healed. Even the parasites seemed to be holding at manageable numbers now, instead of reproducing in overwhelming multitudes.

Syndil stopped gawking at the evidence long enough to find her own body again. "Your wounds are healed. The only marks left are the scars on your shoulder and thighs."

Dominic nodded distractedly.

Syndil's eyes flashed to the young woman lying still in the earth before returning to Dominic's brooding gaze. "Perhaps you should rest now. I or Jacques will alert you should she awaken."

Dominic shook his head almost imperceptibly, enough to convey his meaning. Syndil sighed, rising to her feet and blowing out the candles in hopes that he would follow her advice if he were left alone and in the dark.

He waited until the woman left to return to Aingeal. Lovingly, he removed her from the ground to hold her close to him, his clothes the only barrier between them. He wanted to crush her so close she could never get away from him, but he refrained. They both needed her to come to him on her own.

He lay back in the yielding dirt with her, his face buried in her moonbeam soft hair. Aingeal was a miracle to him, shining bright against both the darkness of the chamber and his soul. Testing the limits of his control, he stroked the small of her back, the skin as smooth and glowing as the petals of a white rose. He breathed her scent, that of lavender and earth, deep into his lungs.

Laying there, with his soul wrapped safely in his arms, he contemplated his plight. His people were in danger. As a sworn hunter, he was obligated to protect them from any threat. Yet, the danger to be eliminated was the key to his continued existence as anything other than the undead. In that moment, he knew he would protect her at all costs. Dominic would not abandon his people but, for the first time in his life, he was going to be selfish.

He began to form a plan. As long as the vampires believed him to be among their number, Dominic could infiltrate their ranks. A new rage filled him. He was going to decimate them from the inside out for threatening his lifemate and his race. To do so, however, he would have to leave Aingeal in the safe keeping of the Prince, allowing her to further spread the vampires' disease.

Dominic growled low in his throat, unable to see a way to best his enemies without making unacceptable compromises. He would simply have to trust the healers' abilities to find a cure _after_ he removed the vampiric threat. He could not risk compromising Aingeal's safety by revealing the knowledge of her purpose to the other Carpathians. When he completed his task, he would be able to protect Aingeal himself. For now, he grudgingly turned to the healing sleep of his kind.

_The vampires will face a new beast, when I awaken. _The dragon inside of Dominic roared with triumph as he succumbed to the need for rest, Aingeal safely beside him.

* * *

Aingeal shuddered, her hot face pressed against the cool floor of the home Lachesis had taken her to. Her forebear had forced upon her visions of the distant past and future, pushing her powers ever farther. In this latest attempt, Aingeal had seen the first stone of the ancient pyramids rolled into place. Lachesis was still not appeased.

"How much more of this will it take before you stop viewing others' fates and start influencing them?" The woman asked almost idly.

Aingeal sat up, shaking and pale, to stare across the white marble room at her grandmother. "Why don't you just TEACH me what you want me to know, and stop TORTURING ME!" A vase shattered as Aingeal's appearance darkened.

Lachesis looked down at her with disgust. "Perhaps you are too much your father's child and I'm wasting my time."

"Fine." Aingeal rose unsteadily to her feet. "We've both kept to our bargain. If you believe you have no more use for me, send me away!"

Lachesis cocked her head to the side. "No. You can leave at any time, under your own power. And if you cannot," she held her hands as if washing them of guilt, "you are of use to no one and may stay here until death truly claims you."

Aingeal crumpled in pain as Lachesis bombarded her with yet another vision. This one was familiar, a hint of what was to come if the vampires had their way.

_Aingeal did not bother with checking the other houses; she knew what she would find. Instead, she went directly to Gabriel's house, to Skyler and the scene she knew awaited her. Aingeal once more jumped over the broken body of Gary Jansen, desperately trying to make it to her friend's room in time. In time to do what, she did not know._

_She appeared at the same moment as before, however, watching as the blonde woman dropped Skyler, lifeless, to the bed. An unheard scream broke free from Aingeal's lips, only to be stifled as the woman turned as before…_

_For the first time, Aingeal wrenched herself from the vision to seek another. Many tendrils of fate attempted to wrap her in their embrace, but she fought loose. Today, she had a purpose: following a single, distinct path. She found the vision she sought with surprising rapidity._

_A woman lay contorted upon the floor, her pain reverberating through the chamber of the cave she was trapped in. Her tormentor stepped forward from the shadows to force his bleeding wrist to her mouth. She gulped weakly as the thick fluid flooded her mouth and throat. With the blood came a horrible burning sensation that overshadowed the anguish of only moments before. Tears streaked down her face as she was violently sick over and over again. Her captor looked upon her with disgust before commanding her heart and lungs to stop functioning._

_Aingeal watched the scene with new understanding. Through the hours she had been forced to witness the event, Aingeal assumed her mother died when Maxim stopped her heart. She was wrong. Maris had been converted._

_Years of brutal punishment assailed her unhampered memory. Suddenly, she wished for the comforting void she had lived in for so long. Death was going to kill her with her past. Already, she was hyperventilating. She was coming undone, literally vibrating with energy as the fear of her childhood monster triggered her abilities._

Lachesis looked upon her progeny as the girl's form shivered in and out of existence. Self-loathing filled her as she empathized with Aingeal's conflict. Sometimes, Lachesis was just too good at manipulating others for her own benefit. Her wall of apathy, carefully built through the centuries, cracked in the face of a torment so like her own. The Fate's eyes filled with tears as she felt the familiar ripple in death, the signal that another had ascended. Now, Aingeal's future was completely in her own hands as Lachesis could neither see nor affect another Fate's destiny.

She banished all emotion from her face before turning to the girl who had managed to transport herself across the room. "You're free to go," was all she offered in the way of comfort.

The young woman gasped for air, fighting the soul wrenching pain of her first use of power. "What…about…_them?"_ She finally managed.

Lachesis knelt beside her granddaughter. "You've spread a plague amongst the Carpathians. There is nothing to be done on that account except to wait and see who falls to vampirism."

"You could stop it." Aingeal clung to consciousness with her fingertips. "Put an end to every single parasite, kill me if necessary."

Lachesis smiled grimly, gripping Aingeal's face and tilting it to look up at her. "I've tried every conceivable action. Again and Again, I wove the fabric of this time, only to have it end in a tangled disaster. This is my only recourse, to allow you to create this piece of the future. I cannot know what will happen, but I know the alternatives are certainly no better."

"I don't know what to do!" Aingeal pleaded.

Lachesis laughed as if at some joke only she understood. "Neither do I!"

"Come. You must go now." Lachesis continued when she had recomposed herself. "Time flows brokenly between death and life, but I will assure that you arrive at the proper moment."

Lachesis helped Aingeal to prop unsteadily against a wall. "Remember, you are welcome in my home at any time. I expect your great aunts will feel the same as well." An unexpected jolt shot through Lachesis' hand into Aingeal. With a wrench, the young Fate was catapulted through death and into life.

* * *

Aingeal shot up, her hair now fixedly the blonde of her mother's ancestors. She had no way of knowing, but Dominic had departed only scant moments before, clothing her on his way out. A frustrated growl clawed forth from her throat. Her cursed power, that had tormented her every breathing moment, was now possibly not enough. Her memories, unhampered by the barriers she recognized as Razvan's, came at her full tilt.

Faces of Carpathians, now dependant upon her, flitted across her watery vision. She allowed despair to engulf her. She could not stop the parasites and, consequently, could not prevent the rising infant mortality rate or save the Carpathians from vampirism. Lists of the impossible tasks before her crowded in amongst the utter melancholy. She was so full of rage and anguish and disappointment, she thought she would fly apart.

Amazingly, she stayed in tact, kept breathing. There was no rampaging of power to tear through the healing room. Instead, a deep calm filled her, freeing her mind to the possibilities of the future. Truly, only two problems faced her, protection and destruction. The first was a noble endeavor. The second…well, the second would at least provide her darker nature with a satisfying preoccupation.

She laughed without reason. Standing and stretching, Aingeal contemplated the irony of her life. After years of running away from her vampire father, she was going to willingly step into the life he had vacated. She had been grateful to learn of his death, the only comforting piece of information gleaned from Lachesis' "lesson." Yet, she understood him. It was hard not to when the thrill of finally abandoning all morals ran through her.

Aingeal sighed, quashing that side of herself before it swept her away. She would have to leave behind everything good about herself before giving in. The Carpathians would need some sort of warning.

She climbed the stairs from the cellar to the main room of the cabin. Syndil and Francesca had left to be with their mates, and in turn, Savannah had come to Gregori's side. It was a wicked stab to Aingeal's heart to have to see the two couples, Gregori and Savannah as well as Jacques and Shea, before her. Aingeal wrote it off as her reluctance to leave the only acceptance she had ever found.

She cast her eyes to the ground before dropping her bombshell. "I'm infected-we're all infected-with parasites." She flashed her eyes to meet Gregori's. "They're meant to turn the males and control the females."

Aingeal would have guessed it was the first time Gregori had ever been surprised. He pulled Savannah to him, and, in a swirl of mist, they were both gone. Gregori's fears were confirmed. His children were in danger and his lifemate was the host for a horde of unseen parasites. This struck a chord so deep and primal within him he fled, fled as he had not in centuries of battling the undead, of fighting similar parasites within the body of Destiny. The need to protect his mate won out.

The healer's reaction startled Jacques as nothing else could have. He reverted back to former days, pinning Shea safely behind him.

_Stop it, wild man. _Shea reprimanded him with a pinch. _What more danger could I possibly face if I'm already full of these parasites?_

The red haze receded from Jacques' vision. His Shea was always logical, pushing aside her emotions to analyze the situation with her brain that worked so much like a computer. He stiffened as his lifemate approached the grim young woman but did not allow his instincts to rule him further.

"We will handle this," assured Shea. She raised a hand to comfort the girl, but Aingeal side-stepped quickly towards the door.

"I'm leaving…" She stopped, wanting to tell them to not spare any worry for her, to find a cure; if she survived her plan to eradicate the vampires, then she would need a way to be free of the creatures forever. But she did not.

_Jacques! _called Shea, seeing the girl hesitate.

He whipped forward, blocking the doorway as the girl once more moved into action. "You will not leave. By the laws of our people, I cannot hold you after you are eighteen. However, I will protect you from yourself, if I must, until that very last moment."

Aingeal considered breaking free, but her newfound calm held. She turned to look at Shea's concerned face. They were afraid, but still, they asked her to remain. Four days being all they requested, Aingeal conceded. So far, her plan was scanty anyway. Staying would allow her the time to perfect her vampire act.

Seeing her acceptance, Jacques stepped away from the exit. "We should not linger here, then; the sun is rising." He reached with his mind to force Aingeal's body to form mist, but she was gone.

Aingeal shimmered to the couple's home. Knowing, all too well, its location, thanks to her horrifying visions. She was fighting so desperately to hold back the future; would her efforts be enough? That very question preoccupied her thoughts as she waited, waited for a destiny now entirely in her own unsteady hands.


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's note: Hey kids, I've finally rewrote chapter 8. Sadly, I was almost through with it when my computer had to be resurrected from the clutches of on evil trojan virus. It was all to the good, though. I think this version came out much better...not to mention far more tawdry. So enjoy!**

**P.S. In case you didn't catch the hinty hint before, this chapter contains some romance. As always, I assume you've all read Christine Feehan and were fully prepared for what was coming. If not, shield your eyes in 1,2,3,4,5,6,7...**

* * *

**8**

Aingeal lay stretched out beneath the moonlight. Too far away to hear the conversation between Jacques and Mikhail, she watched through her newfound power of viewing, and even influencing, others' fates. As the conversation concluded, her eyes opened to her surroundings. She was to be quarantined, unable to contact Skyler or any other until Gregori could cure the Carpathians. Aingeal understood the need, and she also knew she was not the only one to be quarantined. The rest of the Carpathians would also be keeping to themselves.

Still, she did not feel inclined to stay any longer. Aingeal cast about in her mind, looking for Razvan's location. She still could not find him. She stood up anyway, preparing to flash into the village and cause mayhem until he found her. She had spent enough time hiding.

A flash of light in her peripheral vision made her pause. She stretched, giving herself an excuse to investigate. The light was a reflection of moonlight from a scope on a gun. Aingeal smiled tauntingly as she searched the minds of the group sent to investigate her. They believed her to be a vampire, all but one unreadable mind. Well, they were about to get as much vampire as she could muster from within herself. Aingeal's fangs lengthened as she put aside conscience for instinct, giving in to the dark taint of the vampire so prominent in the area.

Crina recoiled from the scope of her sniper rifle as Aingeal disappeared from her sight. "Stay alert! The target is aware of our presence." She expertly dismantled the rifle as her recon team scanned the surroundings for danger.

"It's all clear…" The man trailed off as Aingeal's mocking laughter filled the small clearing.

All eyes turned to Crina just as she felt hot breath on her neck. "Hold still," hissed Aingeal, "and I won't have to kill you."

Crina realized what was happening only a second before fangs pierced deep into her neck. Aingeal did not give her time to act rashly, seizing control as soon as the blood touched her tongue. Information flooded into her, all of it unrecognizable beneath the red haze of feeding. She lost herself in the feeling for an undetermined amount of time. Only an annoyingly irregular pattern wormed its way into her thoughts. Aingeal's head shot up as soon as she realized that it was Crina's heart she was hearing.

The men sprang, having recovered in the few seconds Aingeal drained Crina. Aingeal sprang into the air, sprouting oversized wings to carry herself and Crina. Tearing at her wrist, Aingeal frantically forced Crina to drink as she struggled to carry her burden. Only a few hundred yards ahead of her pursuers, Aingeal was forced to land in the forest as Crina opened her eyes.

It took only a second for the injured woman to draw her knife, laying open Aingeal's forearm. Aingeal cursed, taking the knife and flinging it an inch into a nearby tree.

Sharp teeth snapped together just in front of Crina's face. "I have taken your blood. If you keep following me, I will use it to destroy you."

Aingeal flashed away, not bothering with any further warning. If Crina was too stupid to take it, then she was too stupid to live.

Crina sat up shakily as Aingeal once more shimmered out of view. Her blood pounded through her veins as she took in information with her suddenly enhanced senses. Over the roar of her blood, she could hear her men running toward her, still a hundred or so yards off. Giddiness rushed over her as realization struck. Aingeal had given her blood. Crina laughed as the first of her men came into view.

"Are you hurt?" He panted.

"No, far from it." Crina had always had an enhanced tracking ability. Now that Aingeal's blood mingled with her own, she would always know exactly where the vampire was. She hid her satisfaction as the rest of her men surrounded her, guns at the ready.

"I've put a tracer on the vampire." She lied, never one to reveal her abilities. "We will regroup and wait for daylight to attack the vampire's lair. With any luck, she will lead us to the main nest."

Crina broke off from the group, not looking back to see if they followed her back to the cars. Her father would be pleased.

Aingeal felt warm hands grip her arms as she stumbled into her unknown destination.

"Why are you here?" A voice roughened by anger asked her.

Aingeal opened her eyes, slightly dizzy from her long journey. She had to look up to see the face of the man holding her in a firm, though not unkind, grip. "Dominic." She addressed him.

Dominic barely kept himself in check as a surge of unexpected emotions overwhelmed him. Lust, confusion, and anger warred for dominance in his mind, but an overriding fear for his lifemate reigned supreme. He pressed Aingeal to him tight enough to bruise, forcing her to bend backward to look up at him.

"Why are you here?" He asked again, more softly.

Aingeal shoved away from Dominic, sensing a new darkness within him. Inwardly, she cursed herself anew for bringing a plague to the Carpathian people. She could feel the parasites working within him.

"So you're a vampire now, huh?" She asked nonchalantly. She flashed her eyes at him. "I thought you showed promise."

The hurt reaching from her mind to his belied her words and allowed him to collect himself. Already, he could feel Maris racing towards them.

Ainaak enyem, he reached out to her along their tentative mental path, _I am not vampire. I am your lifemate, and I will protect you above all else._

A desperate, terrifying hope filled Aingeal, a hope that could destroy her completely. Dominic's very nature called to her as he bared his soul, trying to convince her of the truth. As she felt herself reaching out towards him, she jerked free of their connection. Hurt speared into Dominic's heart before he shut down his emotions.

"Maris is attempting to unravel my safeguards." He stated matter-of-factly.

_I can't deal with all of this. _Aingeal thought, even then preparing herself for whatever would come next.

Feeling her resolve, Dominic dropped his barriers to allow the vampiress in. He subtly shifted his position as Maris sauntered in, placing himself in front of his lifemate.

"It has been too long, daughter." Maris opened her arms wide as if to embrace Aingeal.

Aingeal stood impassive, staring down Maris. A gleam of fear shone from the vampiress' eyes as she dropped her arms.

"Have you no greeting for me?" She snapped, earning a warning growl from Dominic. Maris's eyes jumped to him suspiciously. "Or do you only have such niceties for whores like him."

Dominic felt the implication resound with Aingeal. "Such jealousy does not become you, Maris. You never have and never will entice me in any way."

Maris turned back to her daughter, disgust written across her face. "Lifemates!" She spat at Aingeal. "How dare you become so attached when your people need you."

A hollow ache throbbed inside Aingeal, and she did not refute the claim. Maris had always known the truth of relationships. That is how she had fallen into Maxim's clutches; she was seduced by the truth of their match.

"I've done everything _dear _father intended, so don't worry on that account." Aingeal injected the venom of a motherless childhood into her next statement, wanting to hurt Maris. "And don't worry, I won't repeat your mistakes."

Maris's face contorted into a shriek as she launched herself at Aingeal. Dominic reacted first, plucking Maris from the air and throwing her back into the wall. In the same moment, Aingeal launched herself forward, pinning her mother beneath her as she landed. Regret shook her as the pitiful creature who had once been her mother writhed, trying to free herself.

"Stop," commanded Dominic, gathering the energy required to blast Maris.

"No," said Aingeal, guessing his intent. "Let her live. She's the only piece of my mother left alive." She dropped back into her vampire act, gripping Maris's throat tight enough to strangle. "Besides, she can be quite useful. I'm through being a puppet, so let everyone know it. Oh, and Maris, if you challenge me again, I'll kill you myself."

Aingeal raised herself up, turning her back on Maris. Maris stood frozen, looking as if she would tear out Aingeal's heart. Aingeal turned back to her mother.

"Leave." She stated simply, as if Maris no longer mattered enough to anger her. Maris slunk unhappily from the cave.

As soon as Maris was gone, Aingeal's knees gave out. Dominic was there to catch her before she hit the floor. Instinctively, Aingeal recoiled from the contact. Dominic released her, allowing Aingeal to sit by herself on the floor.

Dominic rewove the safeguards, giving Aingeal time to gather her thoughts before returning cautiously to her side. For a long while, they just sat there. Aingeal relaxed gradually, turning to look at Dominic who was watching her intently.

Aingeal's thoughts spilled out of her mouth before she could stop them. "I'm not supposed to have a lifemate! How can you do this to me! I gave up on ever having anyone for myself, and here you are ripping that all open for me again." She wiped tears angrily from her eyes as she spoke. "I'm not meant to have happiness, but I have a purpose and it's used me up. I don't have anything left to give but my life. All I can do is fix the problems I have caused and then try and find some peace in death. They wouldn't let me die before, but they'll have to when I fix the plague I caused…"

Dominic let all of her fears and secret thoughts tire themselves out, dragging her onto his lap as she fell into quiet sobs. Her words barely made sense, but her emotions were clear enough. _She _did not feel worthy to have a lifemate. That astounded Dominic.

"You are the most giving person I have ever met. If you do not deserve happiness, then there is no one that does." With his last few words, he sent her a strong compulsion to sleep.

Aingeal accepted the weight of sleep, needing to escape her own confused thoughts. As her breathing and heart rate slowed, Dominic held her to him, fighting against the part of himself that demanded he claim her. He clamped his jaw firmly shut to keep the ritual words from spilling forth. Hot beads of blood began to run down his forehead as he fought the implacably rising beast within himself.

As Dominic tried to remove his arms from around Aingeal, he found himself mesmerized by the feel of her skin as he stroked her arm. The dragon within Dominic roared with triumph as it scented its victory. Internally, Dominic urged Aingeal to awaken and save him from himself.

Aingeal felt the dragon tattoo on her collarbone burning as if being branded into her skin all over again. She struggled beneath the layers of the compulsion to sleep. As mentally exhausted as she was, it took a long time for her to battle her way back to consciousness. When she finally opened her heavy lids, the first things she saw were Dominic's fiercely red eyes watching her. Aingeal suppressed a shudder as he scraped his teeth across the pulse on her wrist. He quickened his pace to keep time with her suddenly thudding heart.

"Dominic." She said firmly, his actions awakening a very strong part of her. "I think of myself as very tolerant, but if you don't stop, I'm going to knock you on your ass."

He growled at her and she growled back, unable to stop the reaction. He was awakening very real fears from her past. As his teeth sketched a shallow scratch across her wrist, she shimmered to the other side of the room, unable to forsake him completely. She straightened, her back against the wall, using every ounce of will she had to keep herself from fleeing. A breeze swept through the room, causing the candle flames to gutter out and leave them in darkness.

In the pitch black, the only thing visible was the red glow of Dominic's eyes as he stalked Aingeal across the room. Fear and determination mixed in Aingeal as she carefully slinked forward to meet Dominic. She extended a rock steady hand towards his face, knowing how foolish it would be to display fear. With slow, steady strokes she caressed his face.

"Dominic." She reprimanded him as he began to sniff her wrist. Carefully, she withdrew her hand, forcing him to rise from his crouch to follow her touch. She stepped to him unafraid, smoothing her hands over his face and through his hair. He slipped his arms around her, his posture softening as he dropped to his knees. His hands made their way slowly own her body, kneading their way down from the small of her back to the back of her thighs. His hand touch was gentler now, but she still kept a hand on his face as she made her way around to his back. She massaged his neck and shoulders, gently pushing him forward until he lay splayed face down.

Aingeal began to glow a faint silver as she used her healing abilities, loosening his muscles as she skimmed her hands over his back. Deep inside of the beast, Dominic shuddered, making his shirt disappear in a desperate need to feel Aingeal's hands on his skin. She gasped at the sight of his masculine back. His beauty was only enhanced by the fiery burn marks she knew ran from the maw of his dragon tattoo all the way up to what she saw now.

Aingeal's acceptance and admiration reached out to Dominic, and he struggled even harder to leash the beast. He began to pant and sweat as if he were running a marathon.

"_Entolam kuulua, avio palafertiilam…" _The dragon roared, thrashing against his tentative control as he stopped speaking. He could not complete the ritual, knowing the words would be false if he said them only to protect himself.

Aingeal's heart overflowed. No one had ever before thought to place her comfort above their own needs.

"I belong to you…" She prompted, reciting the words from her visions of the Carpathians.

"_Ted kuuluak, kacad, kojed." _Dominic responded.

They both continued, speaking the words together.

"Elidamet andam/I offer my life for you.

Pesamet andam/I give you my protection.

Uskolfertiilamet andam/I give you my allegiance.

Sivamet andam/I give you my heart.

Sielamet andam/I give you my soul.

Ainamet andam/I give you my body.

Sivamet kuuluak kaik etta a ted/I take into my keeping the same that is yours.

Ainaak olenszal sivambin/Your life will be cherished by me for all my time.

Te elidet Ainaak pide minan/Your life will be placed above my own for all time.

Te avio palafertiilam/You are my lifemate.

Ainaak sivamet jutta oleny/You are bound to me for all eternity.

Ainaak terad vigyazak/You are always in my care."

Aingeal lay across Dominic's back as her light ceased to shimmer. Both stayed still in the darkness together as their new connection sank in. For the first time they felt complete, a missing piece of themselves suddenly found. Dominic finally shifted to gather enough heat to relight the candles.

With his task accomplished, he turned back to Aingeal. "Thank you." He caressed her face, his heartfelt words melting her.

"You're really mine aren't you?" She whispered.

Ainaak_, my love, _ainaak. He conversed on their private path, sending across his admiration of her. He could not believe she would risk herself in such a way for _him_. Her simple ability to care staggered him.

She reached tentatively back towards him, blushing as she encountered only thoughts of herself. That blush sent a whole new wave of thoughts through Dominic's mind, all of them centered on how he might see it again.

"…about that whole 'I give you my body' stuff…" Aingeal trailed off.

Dominic tamped down his thoughts with an effort. "When you are ready…only when you are ready."

He rolled away from her to spring to his feet. "The sun is dawning." He reached down to pull her up. "We should go to ground."

"I can't." She admitted. "I've never been able to stop my heart for more than an hour. If I woke up in the ground, I wouldn't be able to breathe."

Dominic berated himself for making her feel ashamed. "Allow me to help you. I can help you to stay asleep until the sun sets again."

"No." She protested, unused to anyone taking care of her. "I can just sleep up here while you…" She waved vaguely at the ground as he ran his hands in her hair, pulling her forward slowly. He gave her plenty of time to pull away as his lips brushed hers.

He kissed her lightly. "Allow me to do this for you." He deepened the kiss, making her moan. He took that as a sign of acceptance, flowing forward into her mind.

_I'm going to have to watch out for that_. She teased him as she fell into the sleep of his people. His own laughter surprised him as he lowered them into the waiting earth, shedding their clothes. He wove the strongest safeguards he knew, that dawn, wanting only the safety of the amazing woman in his arms.

* * *

_Dimitri shivered as the cold wind blew against his overheated skin. The farther from Skyler he went, the worse his symptoms became. His heart was pounding erratically and his skin was on fire. All he could think about was Skyler, the feel of her pressed against him, swaying to music. A multitude of sensations swamped him, driving him to his knees in the snow. Dimitri frantically burrowed into the ground with his hands, unable to muster the power to shift the earth telepathically. He needed relief from his untamed thoughts, from the feel of a thousand bees stinging him from the inside._

_Finally, Dimitri slumped into the shallow hole, finding the will to bring the earth cascading down upon him. He sent up a silent prayer that he had made it far enough to protect Skyler from his torment. In but a second, the last of his breath expelled from his lungs and his heart ceased beating. He had no way of knowing whether he would be man or beast when he awoke again._

Aingeal extracted herself from her vision, still deep within the Carpathian sleep. Outside of her body, she looked down upon the ground where she and Dominic rested feet below. She removed the earth covering them, making sure their bodies were still there. It was disconcerting knowing she was moving around in the real world instead of the land of her visions. Still, she knew of at least one other Carpathian to do so. Gregori.

Aingeal did not allow herself to be swept away in a vision. She could not watch the suffering she had caused, unable to reverse it. The force of her guilt made Dominic's awareness flutter in reaction. Aingeal stilled, all other thoughts and feelings drifting away as her attention riveted on him.

Aingeal could not understand the draw of a lifemate, though she had witnessed it many times in her visions. In truth, the connection frightened her. That fear only heightened her excitement for the adventure Dominic presented.

In her years of comparative freedom, Aingeal had enjoyed extreme activities. It made no sense, but her fear gave her the fuel necessary to run rapids and bungee jump. That same urge let her reach out to Dominic now.

She dropped back into her own body, turning on her side to creep her hand across Dominic's chest. A deep satisfaction welled up inside of her as she looked at the man bare before her. He was completely and utterly hers. More than that, though, she would fight to keep him. She was not one to give herself incompletely to a task, and now that she accepted their bond, she wanted him as she had never wanted anything before. For years she had been used in the plans of others, remaining strong inside of herself as those who should have protected her took everything they could. No more. She cared little what they did to her, but now she had something she was not willing to lose. An implacable rage filled her as she skimmed her fingertips across Dominic's burn marks.

_Congratulations, _she thought to the vampires, _you've finally pushed me too far._ She would destroy them, completely and without mercy.

Her anger hardened and cooled. Justice was now a set course, no longer a simple desire. She put aside her thoughts, turning back to the cool skin beneath her fingers.

Aingeal began to explore him in earnest. She raised herself up on one elbow as she ran her hands over the ripples of his abdomen. Her own reaction startled her as she felt the planes of his body. Her skin tingled as she laid her head on his chest, her fingers tracing the dragon on his hip. Aingeal shivered as she felt heat wash over Dominic's skin.

Until that moment, Dominic had remained hidden in the back of her mind, experiencing the simple pleasure she had in exploring him. However, neither his will nor the time of day could hide his response to her with her hand so close to his groin.

Aingeal jumped as his arms closed around her. Dominic hissed, her movement pressing her soft curves closer into him.

_Let me go, Dominic._ Aingeal prompted him.

_I cannot, _ainaak sivamet jutta. Dominic stated truthfully, sharing with her his stark desire.

Still, his arms slid from her, releasing her as he tried to calm his mind and body. Aingeal smiled, rolling herself against him, eliciting a sharp intake of breath. A silky robe flowed over her.

Aingeal laughed, undoing any hope of control Dominic retained. _A robe won't save you._

_I thought you wished for me to release you? _Confusion colored his thoughts.

_Sure I did_. She leaned back, kneading her hands from his hips to his thighs. _A girl's got things to do._

_I see. _His words came out husky and clipped as her hands made circles ever closer and closer to his point of desire. A shock went through his body as she finally touched him.

_Are you sure you wish to do this? _He had to ask even though he could feel her excitement as strongly as his own.

_Relax, _she replied, encircling him. _I'm very into this._

He closed his eyes as she began to stroke him. _There is absolutely no chance of me relaxing._

Aingeal hesitated at his words, uncertain if she should continue.

_Please, do not stop. _He poured his emotions into her, wanting Aingeal to feel the pleasure she was giving him.

She continued fearlessly, emboldened by his obvious satisfaction. Bending her head down, she teased him with her hair. New waves of sensation swept through them both.

Music crept into Aingeal's mind and she projected it to Dominic. Her hands moved with the rhythm as it sounded a wild dance. She did not know where the music came from inside her, but she knew it was meant for her and Dominic. Two melodies wove through the tune, one dark and compelling, the other silver and fleeting. Aingeal moved her mouth to lick the pulse over Dominic's heart as the melodies wove together. Her hand kept pace with the music as the tempo increased, Dominic growing tighter every second.

Aingeal's fangs pierced Dominic's skin, the music crescendoing into a roar filling both of their minds. Dominic felt his body relent to Aingeal, his mind blissfully lost in the chaos. Immediately, he took advantage of her inattentiveness to throw of his lethargy and roll over, placing her body beneath his.

_Hold still for me. _He whispered into her mind.

Aingeal opened hooded eyes, surprised. _I thought you were paralyzed during the day!_

He smirked at her, pleased by her expression. _Only during the time when the sun is highest in the sky. Even then I am not completely helpless._

Aingeal lay pliant on her stomach, believing his statement completely. It meant even more to her that so strong a man would give her such control over him. Dominic intrigued her even more now.

A nip on her shoulder brought her back down to earth.

"I do not believe I properly thanked you last night." Dominic growled the dark promise in her ear. Aingeal's spine tingled as Dominic took her hands in his, curling her arms above her head.

The complete trust emanating from Aingeal sent pangs of love through Dominic's heart. Already, his body burned for her again. He pushed aside his own needs, wishing to show her the love she had given him. Dominic melded their minds completely, needing to know what pleased her. He had centuries of knowledge, but knowledge and experience were not the same thing.

Aingeal's smile was radiant. _It pleases me that I am your only. You did not even know if I existed._

Dominic brushed tickling kisses down her spine. _I could not betray you. No other can complete me as you do._

Dominic replaced his lips with his hands, massaging all tension from her muscles. Aingeal's eyes closed as he traced patterns over her back. Without preamble, Dominic scooped her up into his arms and floated them from the earth.

The groan Aingeal gave caused him to grin widely. "Do not worry, love, I am not through with you yet."

Aingeal's stomach tightened in response as he manifested a pile of cushions to place her on. Gently, he propped her up on the pillows, sliding the silk robe off of her as he let his hands trail down her body. Aingeal's heartbeat sped up as she saw his green eyes darken, lingering after his hands.

He kept his eyes locked on her like a predator as he plucked a bottle of oil from the air. Aingeal relaxed again as he concentrated on rubbing the herbal mixture into her skin. He paid special attention to the soles of her feet, feeling her reaction to his hands there.

Slowly, he worked his way up her legs, building the tension inside of her. When he reached her thighs and skimmed his hands up to her stomach, she nearly screamed.

Dominic smirked. "Patience" was all he said as he splayed his fingers, running his hands across her breasts.

All thought abandoned her as he spun her into new levels of desperation. She arched beneath him as the friction of his hands caused her to tremor. Finally, Dominic lowered a hand between her thighs. Aingeal yelped at the sensation, moving closer to him as electricity arced through her. Dominic pinned her down, his slow seduction over. He kissed her wildly as he readied her for him, spinning her over the edge again and again.

Wedging his knee between her thighs, Dominic opened her up to him. Unreasoning fear tore through Aingeal, bringing Dominic to a halt just above her.

_What is it, _sivamet?

_I've never done this before. Doesn't it hurt? _Tears pricked at Aingeal's eyes and she turned her face away from Dominic.

He reached out toward her even as she stiffened. His arms around her, he rocked back. Aingeal fell into him, where he could comfort her.

He could not lie to her, though. _It is uncomfortable the first time._

_I don't think I can go through with this, Dominic. _Aingeal confessed.

_Do not feel ashamed to tell me this. I place your happiness always above my own. _Dominic searched for the right words, unable to assuage her terror. _We are meant to be together, _ainaak enyem. _Our joining will bring only pleasure. When you are ready, I will show you._

_Thank you, Dominic. _Aingeal whispered into his mind.

Sensing she was no longer comfortable, Dominic cleaned and dressed them both in the way of the Carpathians. Aingeal stepped away from him to the other side of the cavern. For a long moment, they remained silent, thoughts of what they were facing crowding in.

Dominic opened his mouth to speak, but hesitated, not wanting to upset her again so soon.

She turned back to him, her eyebrow quirked in irritation. "I heard that thought, and I refuse to go back to Mikhail's protection."

"It is very dangerous here." He said flatly "Especially for you."

"And it isn't for you?" Aingeal huffed in a breath. "Look, if I thought arguing would make you leave, I would shout until I went hoarse. But, it won't work on you and it won't work on me." Aingeal felt him resign to find a way of getting her to safety, but she did not press the subject as the sun sank below the horizon.

They felt the ground lurch, announcing the rising of several vampires.

Aingeal questioned Dominic. "So, what sort of a plan do you have?"

Dominic rubbed his face in his hands. "I am attempting to protect my family. If I can sever Xavier and Razvan's supply of blood, at best, they will age quickly and die or, at worst, they will grow weak and run."

Aingeal gave a lopsided smile that turned Dominic's heart. "You've got a secret agent man thing going on here, huh? Any women with sex puns for names?"

"What?" Dominic looked as if he suspected her of being loony.

Aingeal busted into laughter. "I've wanted to try that since I first saw Natalya. I guess _none _of you watch movies." Really, she wanted to relieve the terrible weight pressing down upon him. They both knew it, and Dominic was grateful for her attempt.

"We never have time for movies." He replied. "We are always too busy rescuing real damsels in distress."

"Suuuure… We let you think that but here's the secret…" She leaned forward conspiratorially, revealing a tantalizing peak of her cleavage. "Us so called damsels find the time to watch movies. We know there can't be that many running around in distress."

Dominic rose fluidly from the ground, his pose mock-intimidating. "I am not above manufacturing distress to get your attention."

Aingeal's pulse skipped in excitement as Dominic stalked forward. "Don't worry, you've got my full attention."

Dominic's posture changed as he cupped Aingeal's face in his hand. He went from playful to loving just like that.

"What were you planning yesterday, when you barged headfirst into a nest of vampires?" Dominic asked her.

"I didn't really have a master plan for that…it kinda happened by accident." Aingeal hurried on as she saw the fury in his eyes at her revelation. "I mean, I had a basic kill-them-all-if-you-find-them plan, but no real finesse involved in getting from A to B…" She trailed off lamely.

"How is it that you came to be unprotected in the first place." Dominic's voice held constrained violence. Perhaps when the vampire threat was removed, he would strangle the males of his species himself.

Aingeal shut down their connection. Was it possible he did not know how she had poisoned the Carpathian people? "I can sort of teleport. They can't track me when I do that."

Dominic reached out to her mind. It hurt that she would shut him out, would not trust him with whatever secret she kept. When she refused to let him in, however, he dropped his attempt. He could tell she wanted space, not comfort, and for the moment he would leave her alone.

A piercing shriek brought them both from their contemplations, however.

"Dominic!" Maris's voice echoed angrily through the tunnels. "Release my daughter so she may see her family."

Aingeal's stomach roiled in protest as she stepped forward. Dropping the safeguards, Dominic grasped her hand. Together, they walked into the unknown.


	9. Chapter 9

**author's note: Hey guys! I hope you like the chapter. I think it's the best one I've written so far! Still, I must remind you that it is patterned after Christine Feehan and has the same romantic content as her novels. Enjoy!**

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**9**

Aingeal stopped dead at the end of the tunnel as Dominic would have continued on into the chamber.

"What are you doing?" She asked darkly, removing her hand from his.

Dominic replied in a deadpan tone, his eyebrow raised at her tone. "I believe we are visiting with your family."

Aingeal reluctantly reopened their connection, making sure the vampires in the next room would not hear their conversation. We_ aren't doing anything. I'm going in there without you._

Dominic used his larger frame to press her backwards, caging her between his body and the wall. _I can see your thoughts, little one. You would walk into a vampire's nest alone, believing they will attempt to murder you._

Aingeal shrugged, her eyes locked defiantly upon his. She did not reply.

Dominic's teeth snapped together. _I would never allow this._

That earned a response from Aingeal. "_Allow_?!" She hissed. _I don't care what you _allow. _I'm going in there alone because it is the best way to find out what is happening. It is not like vampires to simply wait for… _Aingeal trailed off, not wanting to reveal her part in the corruption of the Carpathian people.

_You are correct, _Dominic conciliated, revealing his knowledge. _It is not in the nature of the vampire to wait while their parasites take effect. However, your family still has use for you. Your mother, especially, believes that you have returned to lead them._

Aingeal turned her head away from him, not wanting to see condemnation in his eyes.

Dominic seized the opportunity, sinking his teeth into her exposed neck. _I will not stop you this time, but you must merge your mind more fully with mine. _He pinned her hands to the wall as she fought against him. _Drink now, _he warned, _or I will continue until you are too weak to resist my removing you from this place of danger._

Aingeal thrashed against Dominic. Her strength draining away from her, however, she could not remove him from her body or her mind. Also, with their thoughts merged, she could feel the way he responded to her moving against him in such a way. She stopped struggling immediately, dismayed as she recognized her own reactions.

Dominic's voice was smug in her mind as he felt his victory. _I am not hurting you, _sivamet. _It is natural that our bodies should feel this way, particularly when you move in such a tempting manner._

_I don't feel anything, _she lied blatantly, sinking her teeth hard into his shoulder in reprimand. _And I wasn't moving in a "tempting manner." I'm so pissed at you._

He laughed then, without even the decency to wince as she clamped her teeth down harder. Instead, he closed the punctures on her neck, leaving his mark behind. Aingeal shivered as he slowly traced the remaining trickles of blood with his tongue.

Her strength returned, Aingeal shimmered out from between Dominic and the wall, leaving him to close his own wound. _You jackass, you know I can't fix the mark on my neck by myself. _She said, reappearing across the tunnel from him.

His laughter shimmered in her mind as he quickly sealed the tiny bite on his shoulder. _I am aware of that fact. _Without further comment, Dominic transformed into mist and streaked back to their sleeping chamber.

Aingeal felt his mental retreat and was not fooled. She knew he remained a shadow in her mind, watching as she opened a doorway through the tunnel wall. Aingeal shut down all thoughts of Dominic, though, as she went to face a room full of her family. Her chaotic emotions were harder to still, but she managed it, taking her time looking about the room. Two men and Maris occupied the small area, one man posturing possessively over the vampiress.

"Daughter, this is your uncle Tertius, my mate since your father was killed by Mikhail." Maris spat the Prince's name. "That is Emil." She indicated the figure lounging nearest Aingeal.

The overly pale vampire bowed in a sickening parody of a gentleman. "Our other brother Aleksandr is unfortunately detained." Aingeal suppressed a shiver at the sadistic glow in Emil's eyes. She did not want to guess at what the other vampire might be doing to cause such a look.

Still, she could not stop herself from asking. "What has him so detained that he could not witness his own niece's homecoming?"

Maris hissed at her disrespectful tone. "You have no right to be so arrogant! You, who have never known the pain of conversion, could not possibly understand. You were born a powerful vampire, your uncle was not and the change does not sit well with him."

Aingeal forced herself to sneer at her mother's nonsense when really her heart was breaking. "I had no idea you believed such shite, mother. Is this how they keep you in their power, with misinformation?" She glared at Tertius and Emil. "They were all born Carpathian; there is no conversion for them, only a choice."

Maris's mouth gaped as her head undulated back and forth from her mate to her daughter.

Ainaak enyem, _do not provoke them. Maris cannot be helped. The madness of Maxim's misuse of her and his death has put her beyond the reach of reason. _Dominic's voice swept through her mind, allowing her to release her impossible hope.

_I know. _She replied despondently. _For a moment I just wished… I don't know what I wished._

_I am sorry it is so, little love. _Dominic brushed a kiss across her forehead before receding back from her mind.

Maris leaned into Tertius'. "It makes no difference what you believe. I have undergone conversion, and so now is Aleksandr, though he fights it."

Maris's words clicked together for Aingeal. "You mean you are forcing vampirism on him through the parasites."

Tertius pushed aside Maris. "You are very intelligent for one so young. That piece of filth never saw fit to use her own mind, always leeching off of Maxim and then myself after his death. I fulfilled my duty, though. It was his wish that I take care of you both if anything should happen to him."

"You're very selfless." Aingeal had to force admiration into her tone. Still, a hint of sarcasm found its way into her words.

A ripple of anger flashed across his visage, but it was laughable next to Maris's livid features. "YOU USED ME!! EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU!!" She screeched, her shrill voice piercing in the close confines.

Tertius back handed her, cutting off her shrieks. Before she could think about it, Aingeal was across the room and shielding Maris. She crouched low before her mother, shadowing Tertius' moves as he tried to creep around her.

"She is a weakness to you just as she was to your father. Step aside and I will assure that she no longer plagues us." Tertius attempted to make his tone compelling.

"Leave, Maris." Aingeal whispered, deadly quiet.

"I will never forget this betrayal, daughter." Maris's voice was more feral than human.

"That's right, Maris, it's all _me!_" Aingeal snapped. Maris dissolved into mist, streaming from the chamber.

When she was gone, Aingeal straightened, her head pounding. The sheer power Dominic was channeling into her was beginning to give her a fierce headache. Still, he did not relent, ready for an attack from Tertius at any moment.

The until then silent Emil stepped forward, breaking the tension. "Come, brother, niece, the only possible weakness in our plan has just fled. We should be rejoicing."

"What plan?" Aingeal asked blatantly, in no mood to try and coax the answer from the deranged vampires before her.

Emil flashed a smile of sharp teeth at her. "Let us simply say that it will be the vampires ruling when the war is ended, despite what Razvan and Xavier seem to think. Your blood, your mother's blood, is the key."

When Emil did not continue, Aingeal prompted him. "How so?"

Tertius bared his teeth at her, but Emil indulged her when she did not back down. "You have common ancestry with the Carpathian's Prince. It is through him that the Carpathian people are connected and it will be through you that the vampires are united. It is why we increased our search for psychic women. We knew a similar bloodline remained in the humans." Emil grimaced. "Though Razvan has managed to twist our quest to his own purposes."

She could imagine the many uses a psychic woman would have, not to mention Razvan's constant need of dragonseeker blood.

Aingeal bit back the revulsion she felt at her own twisted part in their plan. "Well, as I have no immediate use, I will be leaving." She was already retreating from them. "Call me when everything is in place."

They circled around her and she winced as the power Dominic was holding in check increased threefold. "You cannot leave the safety of our lair." Announced Tertius.

_Now! _She screamed at Dominic, unable to stay in their presences for a single moment more.

In the blink of an eye, both vampires burst into flames. As they lurched towards her, Aingeal shimmered from the room, her only thought for the world above.

Clean air billowed over her, the wind whipping the forest around her into a frenzy as a storm began. The earth and heavens shook with the force of Dominic's fury. As he wavered between destroying the two vampires so close at hand and chasing after his lifemate, Aingeal bolted. His decision made, he burst to the surface, roaring as the dragon claimed his body. Bright green scales rippled over his skin and wings burst from his shoulders. Rain began to pound down to earth as Dominic flung himself into the sky with a single powerful thrust of his wings.

Aingeal ran from him and what he represented within herself. No longer would she be her parents' child. She would have no lifemate, no destiny. Tears mingled with the rainwater on her face as she thought of Dominic. Another roar broke through the storm, startling her and causing her to trip. On all fours, she utilized her stolen knowledge. Screaming as she shifted too quickly, Aingeal contorted and compressed her body into the shape of a wolf.

She lay there panting on the ground as Dominic flew to hover over her. The beat of his wings nearly flattened the trees, causing them to moan and creak as neither Dominic nor Aingeal spoke. They were too lost in their turbulent emotions for words. As Dominic began to shift back into his body, Aingeal started to run again. Halfway between man and dragon, Dominic dipped below the tree line to fly after her.

Aingeal strained her muscles until she felt as if she were on fire, but she could not escape Dominic. She tried several times to run off of the cliffs just beyond the forest's edge. Every time, though, Dominic was there ahead of her, beating her back with gusts from his wings.

After what seemed an eternity, Aingeal was fighting with herself to keep moving. Her muscles cramped, her lungs burned. Always, Dominic was right there, an implacable force determined to follow her anywhere.

Soon, Aingeal shifted back into her own body, no longer able to hold the image of the wolf. She crashed into a tree, using it to hold her naked body up as she gagged helplessly. She had not eaten food in over a week.

Dominic was there to catch her as she collapsed. With a gentleness that belied the darkness raging inside of him, he held her close.

Aingeal beat weakly at the solid wall of his chest. "I don't want you!" She cried hoarsely. "I can't love you, can't be yours. I don't have anything left of myself."

Dominic felt her words stab at him like shards of glass. In the clouds above, lightning began to arc, forming the outlines of a great dragon.

"I need you." His voice dripped with power, echoing through the forest though he had spoken softly.

Aingeal's eyes snapped to his, too weak to resist him. Immediately, Dominic's mind thrust into hers, centuries of darkness blossoming for her vision. Only a single light, his sister Rhiannon, alleviated the crushing void of emotion, until she too was taken from him. For hundreds of years afterward, he existed alone and tormented as no other Carpathian before had ever been.

Aingeal pressed her face into Dominic's chest, trying to drive out the things he was showing her. Dominic continued relentlessly, showing her his decision to seek the dawn. A sob tore up from Aingeal's chest, and she rocked back and forth, in time with the images that started to come fast and faster.

At one moment, Dominic was in Mikhail's home, the next, leading the way across a field of danger. Fire consumed his left side as he met an invisible barrier. Pain became his existence, but finally he could let go. Instead of releasing him, however, the ones he protected tied him to a world of misery. Countless hours of hell consumed him until a single moment of peace stole into his world.

"You cannot leave me to that world again, angel. Finally, I can remember finding joy in life." The images emanating from Dominic changed. Now he was running through fields as a wolf, laughing beneath the stars, and singing to an audience as his sister played a stringed instrument.

The melody his voice created swelled in Aingeal's mind, driving out all other thought. "God, _sivamet_, need me. Crave me as I do you." He whispered into the night, tears stinging his eyes for the first time in countless years.

Aingeal moved against him then, unable to stop herself. He was giving her back pieces of her soul. With his voice in her head, she remembered a time when she was never without music. Always a melody had filled her head. Somewhere along the line, her harsh existence had crushed that out of her. She had been so ground down by her overwhelming visions of others, she had begun to lose herself.

Dominic managed to awaken the part of her she had not known survived, and it reached out to him now. She wrapped her arms around his neck. For the first time, she initiated their kiss.

Dominic took control then, lifting her feet from the ground and wrapping her legs around his waist. Her heat called to him even through his clothes. Holding her easily with one hand, he allowed the other to roam her body. He walked forward, all the while caressing her bottom and thigh, until she rested against the tree. Feeling his need as her own, Aingeal leaned back, allowing his hands to cup her breasts.

He paused there, teasing her breasts, his groin painfully tight. He waited for her acceptance.

_Condom, _was all she could manage to convey to him.

Dominic jerked in response and suddenly he was everywhere, kissing her, touching her. He pulled the condom from the air and pressed it into her hand.

_Put it on me. _He growled.

Aingeal ripped open the silver packet. As he placed her on her feet, Dominic shed his clothes with a thought. Instantly, she was gripping him, rolling the thin covering until it covered him completely. When she would have kept going, Dominic raised her hands to his face, jerking her against him.

_Not now. I need to feel all of you. _Dominic pushed his hands down her until he cupped her bottom. He tightened his hold until she was crushed against him.

A million different ways to take her flashed through his mind, each sending waves of heat hurtling through them. Aingeal grasped one of the images.

"From _The Perfume Garden_, huh? I guess you can't go wrong with books." Her teasing tone came out husky.

Dominic was already kneeling, drawing her down to him. Fangs exploded in his mouth as her body lowered. He scraped his teeth from her stomach to her breasts until she halted. Each movement of his teeth over her pulse sent chills running along her spine. As his tongue flicked out to taste the skin over her heart, his hands sneaked his way up her back to her shoulders. Slowly, without her noticing, he pulled her the remaining way down until they were touching intimately.

Aingeal hummed as Dominic rubbed against her. He continued to torment her as he settled her over him. Soon, he met her innocent resistance.

She stiffened at the invasion. "Dominic." She whispered half reluctant, half demanding.

_Relax for me. _He sent her a flood of erotic images, massaging her back, making sure she was ready for him.

As she melted around him, Dominic gave one last lick to her pulse before thrusting up and biting down.

A small cry made it past Aingeal's lips before pain gave way to pleasure. Then, Dominic was moving against her, stoking her passion to an entirely new level. Aingeal's hands grasped Dominic's hair, pulling him from her breast and to her mouth. Dominic took the time to close the punctures before giving in to her, letting her taste her own wonderful flavor. As she licked the back of his lengthened canines, Dominic let his hands drop to her bottom.

Aingeal's muscles clamped down as Dominic pulled her further onto him. She was shaking from the effort to hold on to her sanity when he pushed her over the edge. Aingeal shattered, tightening her grip in Dominic's hair so she would not float away. Still Dominic continued, lengthening her pleasure until one orgasm spilled into the next.

Aingeal removed her mouth from Dominic's to find his neck with her teeth. She nibbled his pulse, feeling him shudder before increasing his speed.

_Do it now, love. I need you. _Dominic called out to her.

Aingeal gave a little cry as he managed to pull her closer, then her teeth sank into him. Instantly, he was out of control. He threw her back on the ground, blanketing her body with his. He leaned forward so that his body caressed hers with every stroke. Her legs tightened around his waist.

_More, _ainaak enyem. _Take all that I have to offer. _Dominic lifted her hips, filling her more completely as he wound ever tighter.

Aingeal lowered her foot, writhing it against him. Dominic's surprise filled her mind, taking her over the edge along with him as he tightened against her. Shocks of electricity arced between them as they came apart together.

As Dominic's last shudder faded, she sealed her mark on his neck. Dominic held her pliant body against him as he rolled over.

He looked down into eyes that were yellow and silver for the moment. "I have no doubt that your foot, while lovely, was nowhere in my thoughts."

Aingeal blushed fiercely. "You have your reading. I have mine. Romance novels are very educational, you know."

"I quite agree." Dominic's mischievous grin lit up his face. "What else have you learned in your educational pursuit?"

Aingeal bit her lip, but Dominic caught the information from her mind. "I think we will have to make a special shopping trip." He huffed a put upon sigh. "After all, I will have to make some accommodations for your electronic age style of thinking."

Aingeal rolled her eyes at him. "You're totally into it and you know it, you kinky nymphomaniac."

Dominic closed his eyes to nuzzle the top of her mussed hair. _If I did not have one such tiny flaw, love, the world would be unable to cope with my perfection._

_Suuure, _said Aingeal derisively, a smile in her mental voice.

Sensing others of their kind approaching, Dominic regretfully untangled their bodies from one another.

_Natalya and Vikirnoff? _Aingeal confirmed.

Dominic nodded in assent as he drew his underwear and pants on in one smooth move. _Most likely, they saw my dragon in the sky and come to see the reason behind it. _A crooked smile found its way to his mouth. _However, I don't think nudity is strictly necessary for their inspection._

_You tired me out. _She responded, unmoving on the ground. _You clothe me. _

A revealing negligee formed itself around her. _Nice, but I don't think either Natalya or Vikirnoff will appreciate it._

Dominic stiffened at the mention of the other male. _I think a parka would be suitable in this temperature._

_Maybe for someone who doesn't regulate their body heat. _She laughed at him. _Why don't we go with a nice medium between underwear model and frozen Eskimo?_

Dominic clothed her in her preferred jeans and t-shirt only seconds before the other Carpathian couple walked into sight. Aingeal was up and at Dominic's side almost instantly.

She pinched him hard. _That was cutting it close, and don't think I didn't notice that you left that ridiculous piece of clothing on under this outfit._

Dominic smiled warmly at his great-niece and her lifemate. "Greetings, Natalya, Vikirnoff. Is there something you seek of my lifemate and myself?"

Both pairs of immortal eyes turned on Aingeal. "That was subtle." She reprimanded Dominic.

"Don't worry." Natalya waved away Aingeal's concern. "They're all territorial at first, but they're trainable."

Vikirnoff spoke to Dominic. "I am sorry for my lifemate. She is a terrible influence, but if I left her at home, she would burn everything in sight."

Natalya did not answer. It was probably true.

"We saw your mark in the sky." Natalya addressed Dominic seriously. "Though we felt the bonding between lifemates, we thought it best to make sure you weren't in any danger."

_Holy crap! I forgot other Carpathians can tell when…you know, a couple's first time._ Aingeal's voice was tinged with horror in Dominic's mind.

_Don't worry, _sivamet. _Every pair has a first coupling. _Dominic reached to take Aingeal's hand with his own, but she shied away from him.

_I think I might vaporize on the spot if you touch me right now._

Dominic fought to keep the laughter from his voice. "There was no danger by the time my dragon formed in the sky. We had already made our escape from the lair of the vampires."

"There is still plenty of danger for you two." Aingeal corrected softly. "I am infected with the vampires' parasite."

Natalya shrugged, not at all the reaction Aingeal was expecting. "I have dealt with my own parasites easily enough."

Aingeal questioningly shifted her gaze from Natalya to Vikirnoff. He mirrored his lifemate's response, an elegant rolling of the shoulders. "When she became infected, it was not long before she felt obligated to share the experience."

Aingeal stared blankly at the couple. "So, the other Carpathians are…?"

"Cured, mostly." Natalya smiled ruefully. "It's not really that difficult to get rid of them once you know how. The problem is that we can't prevent them from entering our bodies in the first place. So, the vampires just keep injecting them over and over, wearing us down."

"That is what we believe is happening, now that Razvan is aware we have Natalya." Interjected Vikirnoff.

"What is it you meant by 'cured, mostly'?" Inquired Dominic.

Natalya looked completely drained as Vikirnoff swept her into his arms. "Gregori's lifemate and daughters were greatly taxed by the parasites. Their health is precarious at the moment. Also, we weren't able to find Dimitri or the two of you." She replied succinctly.

Vikirnoff spoke next. "Now that we have located you, we offer freely our aid."

"I accept your offer." Dominic replied. "What must we do?"

"All I have to do is touch you." Explained Natalya. "Then additional parasites will be injected into your blood. My parasites will act as the good terminator parasites, driving out Razvan's evil terminator ones."

_How will we explain why they're missing? _Aingeal asked Dominic telepathically. She did not want to reveal the depth of their involvement with the vampires to Natalya and Vikirnoff.

Dominic did not respond, unable to lie to her. He planned to endure the infection until he eradicated the vampire threat. As for his lifemate, Aingeal would not return with him.

"Natalya, will you show me how to manufacture the anti-parasites?" Aingeal struggled to keep all traces of her plan from her mind and Dominic.

"I can, but I doubt it will do any good." Natalya responded wearily. "Only those with mage blood can create them. That's the reason I've been running around trying to pull everyone's butts out of the fire."

"Razvan thinks to weaken my lifemate by setting her so many tasks. He will not succeed." Vikirnoff stated matter-of-factly.

"Still, will you show me anyway?" Aingeal pressed.

Natalya reached out, brushing Aingeal's mind with her own. Aingeal flinched for a moment, but allowed the other woman to place the method into her mind. Instantly she knew what to do. Before she could think about it, alerting Dominic to her intentions, Aingeal's hand flashed out. Anti-parasites boiled through her, entering Dominic before he could remove his wrist from her grasp.

Her smile was triumphant though a bit wary of Dominic's response. "I have mage blood of a sort."

Dominic tried to be angry with her, but already the oppressive darkness was receding from him. He should have known his lifemate would find a way to cure him. He sighed mentally, brushing a kiss across her fingers as he took her hand in his.

_Thank you, love. _

_No problem. _Aingeal replied, relieved that he was not too upset.

"Wow!" Exclaimed Natalya, unaware of the byplay. "You must have some pretty powerful ancestors to pull that off so quickly."

Aingeal shrugged noncommittally in response to Natalya's questioning look. She would not lightly divulge her relation to Lachesis, one of the goddesses of fate.

The information stunned Dominic as he picked it from Aingeal's head. He did not think he would ever fully comprehend his lifemate. His wonderings were cut short, however, as Aingeal leaned into him. She was completely exhausted from the happenings that night.

Dominic snaked his arm around her shoulder, supporting her without seeming to do so. "We must go to ground."

Vikirnoff nodded. "It takes a great deal of energy to sustain the anti-parasites until they can fully cleanse the bloodstream."

Natalya's face crinkled in distaste. "It's the only bit I haven't been able to replicate from Razvan's parasites. I can't make them function without constantly funneling them my energy."

The way Natalya said the words, with the lack of her usual spirit, seemed to disturb Vikirnoff. "My lifemate has healed many of our kind this evening. We must also seek the earth." Without any further goodbyes, Vikirnoff launched himself into the air with Natalya in his arms.

As they were alone again, Dominic pulled her to him so he could inhale the sweet smell of her hair.

_I don't want to go to ground this time, _mo anam cara. Aingeal's words were slurred in Dominic's mind. She did not seem to notice using the Gaelic term for soul mate, but Dominic was acutely aware of the subtle sign of acceptance.

_I know, love. I can feel your need for mortal sleep. _Dominic scooped her into his arms. _Rest now and I will take you to my home._

Aingeal was only vaguely aware as Dominic streaked across the night sky.


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's note: Hey guys! I just want to say thank you for reading. I looked at my number of hits and visitors and they were awesome! So, read, love, REVIEW!!**

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**10**

Crina slammed the door behind her as she exited her father's study. If the man thought his little revelation would keep her from hunting the vampires, he was sadly mistaken. A wave of black fury swept through her, all of it directed in Aingeal's direction.

She fumed all of the way to her room, bending her mind to the task of tracking Aingeal. Blindly, she began to arm herself. Guns, knives, stakes, as many as she could carry, made their way into her black leather duffel bag. She smiled cruelly as her mind locked onto Aingeal's. The vampiress was sleeping aboveground in a large house not very far away.

Crina glanced at the clock on her nightstand. She would make it to the house just as the sun was at its highest. With a sudden thought, Crina crossed the room to her nightstand. She shoved her silver lighter into her pants pocket, intending to make good use of it once she found Aingeal.

With the duffel strap across her shoulder, Crina surveyed her room. She did not intend to return from her kamikaze mission. Sadly, there was not a single item of comfort she could find to take with her. She thought perhaps things would have been different if her mother had not been taken from her. She pushed her supposing away, though, with a curse for Aingeal.

She spun on her heel towards the door. Without a backwards glance, she walked stiffly from the house to her car. Crina peeled off, racing toward her own demise.

Aingeal woke with a start as Skyler's voice rang in her head. _Aingeal!_

_Skyler, it's noon. What do you want? _The time of day and her own cumbersome body made her irritable. Already, she was slipping back into sleep.

_Stay awake, Aingeal. Please, I need your help! _Skyler's voice sounded tearful.

Aingeal struggled to sit up, sliding out of Dominic's leaden grasp. She paused for a moment to make sure he would stay in the Carpathian sleep.

Carefully, she padded from the sleeping chamber through the hidden entrance. _What is it?_

_It's Dimitri. _She replied immediately, rushing into her tale. _The healers have been unable to find him, and I can feel how the parasites affect him. _

A sob broke through her voice. _Oh god, it's so horrible, Aingeal. I can't even describe it. The pain is so intense that even Dimitri cannot tell where he's at. I know I could find him, but they refuse to let me try. They say he's too dangerous in this state._

Aingeal reached out across their link to hold her best friend as helpless tears flowed down her face. _It'll be alright, Skyler. What do you need me to do?_

Skyler breathed deeply before answering, trying to control her crying. _Come with me to find him. _

Aingeal hesitated, considering the prospect of going against so many of the Carpathians, including her lifemate.

_I can't travel fast enough by myself. _Skyler pleaded. _Gabriel or one of the others will catch me before I can make it to Dimitri._

_We're gonna piss _everyone _off. _Aingeal acquiesced slowly, enunciating every word.

Relief burst through Skyler. _Thank you so much!_

_Yeah, we'll see how thankful you are later. _Aingeal huffed. _We only have a couple of hours before the older Carpathians can come after us. They're going to be aware of what's happening long before that, though. It'll give them plenty of time to plot against us._

Aingeal covered her watering eyes with her hands. _I can't travel like a Carpathian right now, but I'll… _Aingeal stuttered, uncovering her eyes.

_I'll be there soon. _Aingeal succinctly cut herself off from Skyler.

Across the house, at the front door, quiet scratching sounds were emanating as someone picked the lock. Aingeal made her way stealthily through the house, inhaling deeply to catch the intruder's scent. She had to stifle her growl as recognition hit. Crina. Fear and anger warred inside of Aingeal. How had the blasted woman managed to get through Dominic's safeguards? Or found them at all, for that matter?

Aingeal flattened herself against the wall beside the door as it began to open. Crina inspected the room before sneaking quietly forward. Through the stained glass of the open door, Aingeal watched, waiting for Crina to enter far enough for her to attack.

Crina sensed danger the moment her boots hit the oriental rug. She turned as Aingeal slammed out from behind the door, glass shattering as the doorframe rattled. Crina brought up her guns, firing wildly as Aingeal's body drove her to the ground.

A line of fire raced across Aingeal's outer thigh as she slammed Crina's wrists on the floor, forcing her to drop her guns. Dominic was there in Aingeal's mind then, a pale shadow in light of the noon sun. The uncomfortable sunlight beat down upon her through the broken window, prodding her wound, making it burn and bleed. Aingeal pushed all thoughts of her lifemate and the sun away so that she could function.

_What the _hell _are you doing here?! _Aingeal branded the question into Crina's mind, breaking through her thick barriers.

A vision forcefully and unexpectedly seized Aingeal as her mind made contact with Crina's. She fought against its inexorable pull long enough to see Crina toss her aside and reopen the door. Just outside, waiting for Crina, were two canisters of gasoline. Aingeal slid from the present to the past with a scream on her lips.

_Crina sat before a large desk, an older and sickly looking man directly across from her._

"_You may not continue tracking the vampires. I am suspending all missions until further notice." The man declared in a wheezing voice._

"_What!" Crina came to the edge of her seat, outraged. "Why would you do that, Father? We are so close. I know Aingeal will lead me to the largest nest of vampires we have ever found. If you just…"_

"_No!" Snapped the deranged looking old man, cutting off her protests. "You do not understand, Crina. I have just discovered that your mother is not dead, as we have thought for so long. The vampire who kidnapped her turned against her will and forced her to bear his undead child."_

_Crina looked as if he had slapped her. "That can't be true."_

_The seemingly old man scoffed at her, offended that she would question him. "Why not? You can barely remember her."_

_He straightened in his seat, a vindictive glint in his eye. "It is time I stopped protecting you. You believe your mother was taken forcibly, but it was not so. One night, while we were sleeping, a vampire came to our home. He lurked outside, calling to your mother. I tried to restrain her, but she fought against me. She _wanted _to go to him, to leave you behind."_

_Crina fumed in her chair, furious that her father would intentionally try to hurt her. She lashed back at him. "Why don't you ever say her name?"_

_The old man flinched in his chair._

"_Tell me, Father, why you can only speak of her as my mother when you are the one who chose her. If you cannot think why, I will certainly tell you. It is because she ran away from _you. _She never wanted to marry you. You bullied her into it, threatening her family, alienating her from them until all she had was _you_."_

_Crina shuddered, drawing in a deep breath to stop her shouting. Instead, she whispered in a deadly quiet voice, barely loud enough for her father to hear. "I may not remember much from when mother was around, but I remember how unhappy she was. You resented the fact that she could not love you and you beat her for it."_

_Crina rose gracefully from her chair to glide to the door, feeling lighter for having revealed the knowledge she had hidden for years._

_Her father's words froze her in her path, however. "If names are so important to you, then here are a couple you should know. Maris was your mother's name, and Aingeal, the vampire you have hunted so diligently, is your own sister. You might as well be vampire yourself."_

_Crina half turned toward him, her love broken. "You know what is sad, old man? I don't think you even realize that you just lost the only person who ever really loved you."_

"_LEAVE!" Her father's eyes bulged, and spittle flew from his mouth as he screamed at her. _

Aingeal gasped, inhaling the overwhelming scent of gasoline as her senses began to take in the present. Looking around, Aingeal first saw that she was bound with heavy rope and duct tape. A repetitious clicking noise soon brought her attention to Crina.

The dark haired girl sat beside Aingeal in a pool of petrol, igniting her lighter and snapping the lid closed every few seconds. She closed the top on the lighter for the last time as Aingeal's gaze came to rest on her.

"It's been about an hour. I was starting to wonder whether you would wake up before it got dark. I would have torched you in a few more minutes." Crina stated coolly, as if she were wondering whether Aingeal would stop by for tea.

Aingeal pushed herself up with her bound hands until she was level with Crina. She could easily have shimmered out of the restraints, but Crina would have set the whole house ablaze.

Aingeal stalled to give herself time to think of a way out of her predicament. "Crina, why would you do this to your younger sister?"

"That's easy enough." Crina stated calmly, once more beginning her routine with the lighter. "I'm willing to die to get rid of the vampires, and you're a vampire. Why should you being my sister make any difference?"

"I'm sitting here in the sunshine, for god's sake! How can I be a vampire?" Aingeal pointed out.

Crina shrugged uncaringly. "Maybe you're not a whole vampire, but you're enough of one to have taken my blood. You even gave me some of yours, and I can feel the differences in me." She stared accusingly, as if Aingeal had tainted her.

"So why am I still alive?" asked Aingeal.

Crina did not truthfully know. It did not matter what she said, the fact that Aingeal was her sister changed everything, even though it should not. When it had come down to it, Crina had not been able to murder the younger sister she had always wished for.

Of course, Crina revealed none of this to Aingeal. "I need you to tell me where the other vampires are."

Aingeal stilled, beginning to see a way out in which she would not have to kill her newfound sister. "Would you leave here without killing me or setting the house on fire if I told you?"

Crina hesitated for a moment to think about her answer. Slowly, she nodded, meaning it.

Aingeal, a light touch against Crina's mind, sensed she was telling the truth and instantly flooded her with the information she wanted.

"Please, just go!" Aingeal begged, her concern for Dominic breaking free from her tightly held control. She needed to see him, to touch him and make sure he had not died because of her. Aingeal had no doubt now about why Crina was able to slip through Dominic's safeguards. It was because of her connection to Aingeal. Dominic would never have placed safeguards that would harm her, and Crina was like enough to Aingeal to exploit the flaw. Maris, a vampiress, would never have been able to enter their home, but Crina was an unforeseeable human anomaly.

Crina rose from the floor to stand over Aingeal. "I expect you can get out of those on your own." With a nod to the ropes binding Aingeal, she strode through the door.

As soon as Aingeal heard Crina's car leave, she began to weave a safeguard that would prove fatal to Crina should she return. As much as she wanted her sister alive, Aingeal wanted Dominic alive far more.

With her thoughts shifting to her lifemate, Aingeal flashed from her restraints to where Dominic lay below. As soon as she entered the sleeping chamber, Aingeal felt the terrible weight of his gaze. Dominic was furious, consumed by a clawing fear for his lifemate. His emotions staggered Aingeal as he absorbed the sight of her.

She was drenched in gasoline. The smell of petroleum mixed with her blood wafted to him, enticing him further. He raged against the nature of the Carpathian that kept him immobile while his lifemate faced such danger.

His eyes the only moving part of him, Aingeal remained reluctant to face Dominic. Still, unable to stay back while he was in such a state, Aingeal inched forward. His eyes never leaving her face, she stretched out beside him, pillowing her head against his chest to escape his gaze.

Slowly, impossibly, Dominic forced his arm to move toward her. It took an eternity, but finally he felt her beneath his grasp. He squeezed her thigh in punishment for leaving him, for placing herself in danger. Aingeal whimpered, but did not move as his hand began to soothe the terrible burning of her wound.

"I'm not sorry." Aingeal whispered into his chest.

A low rumbling emanated from Dominic, echoing through the room. It receded, however, as Aingeal continued to lay passively in his arms.

Their few moments of calm were soon broken by a cry from Skyler, though. _Where are you, Aingeal? I can feel Dominic turning, he won't last much longer if we don't get to him!_

Her words shocked Aingeal back to the task she had neglected in order to ensure her lifemate's safety. _I had a problem here, but I will be over there as fast as I can. Please don't panic, Skyler. Dominic will be fine. We'll make sure of it._

As Aingeal tried to pull away from Dominic, his arms tightened around her hard enough to bruise. The terrible, rumbling growl resumed and his eyes glowed a warning at her.

She tried to speak, but he was crushing the air out of her. She drew in as much oxygen as she could and tried again. She succeeded.

"I have to go." She said firmly. When he did not budge, she merged her mind with his.

_For this, I'm sorry. _She stated and vanished from his arms.

Dominic's roar was in her mind as she appeared in Skyler's room.

"We don't have much time." She addressed her wide-eyed friend. "Point me in a direction."

Skyler did not hesitate, sticking her arm out to her side. "North."

Aingeal grabbed her friend's hand, flashing them both as far north as she could manage. She paused then, in the middle of a forest, to try and search for Dimitri with her own powers.

"I cannot see him." Aingeal shook her head. "It's like he's only half here."

Skyler pulled at her hand. "Come on, he's this way."

Aingeal followed her instructions, flashing them to several different locations until Skyler spoke again.

"Stop! Go back a bit, about halfway between here and where we were before." Announced Skyler.

Aingeal complied, though it took her a moment to gather the energy necessary. She sat down abruptly at their next location, taking a moment to regain her strength.

Skyler did not seem to notice, breaking away from her grip to run farther into the forest.

"Wait, Skyler!" Aingeal cried, her voice harsh from the amount of energy she had expended. She lurched upward and into a run when Skyler did not heed her call.

Aingeal caught up to her friend at the mouth of a cave. From inside, they heard a horrific roar emanate as the death cry of an animal pierced the night.

_Aingeal, leave that place immediately. _Dominic's tone was deceptively even, masking his prodigious anger.

She turned to look at Skyler. From appearances, it seemed as if she received a similar message from Gabriel if not Lucian as well.

"We found him." Aingeal stated, knowing, even as she said the words. it would not be enough for Skyler to simply leave the care of her lifemate to others.

"I'm not leaving." Skyler stated plainly and firmly.

Aingeal sighed. "Let's do this quickly. Inject him with the anti-parasites if you can. Otherwise, try to stay behind me."

Skyler's eyes glared in defiance. With her lifemate in need, Aingeal knew Skyler would interpret her orders as a usurpation of lifemate duties. She just did not care. Walking forward into the cave, Aingeal imparted her knowledge of creating the anti-parasites to Skyler.

It bothered her that they met no resistance on their way in. Obviously, Dimitri did not mind if they entered, but Aingeal doubted he would remain as amenable if they tried to leave.

The compulsion hit them then. The moment their feet took the first step in, they were drawn backward. It was impossible to win, pitted against three powerful ancients, but they struggled anyway. Slowly, inevitably, they turned and began to walk from the cave.

Yet another roar echoed past them, erecting a solid barrier they could not pass. For a single heartbeat in time, Aingeal and Skyler were pressed against the invisible obstacle. Their skin became painfully heated in the time it took the ancients to alter their compulsion. Now they were trapped a scant inch from the barrier.

Aingeal and Skyler's spines tingled as they felt, but could not see, Dimitri stalking them from just outside of the sun's grasp. The sensation set off something very primitive in Aingeal, a need to confront an enemy rather than cower, not even able to see him. Dominic reached to take the fear from her, unable to comfort her properly in his own emotional climate. Aingeal balked.

It seemed to her as if enemies were approaching from every side, attempting to press her into their own designs. As one of great power herself, Aingeal would not relent. She was fate itself, and the strength of her adversaries served only to feed her own appetite for destruction.

Dominic, Gabriel, and Lucian shifted then, forming from mist to drop just in front of Aingeal and Skyler. The young fate erupted into a brilliant flash of silver at that precise moment, blinding the Carpathian males. Skyler fell onto her knees as the compulsion holding her tight in its grasp suddenly ceased. Somehow, brilliant threads of light flowed from Lucian and Gabriel and into Aingeal. Skyler had only ever heard of this happening once before with Mikhail, the prince of the Carpathians. Still, she knew Aingeal was drawing the ancients' strength into herself.

Aingeal basked in the aura of their power as it flowed into her. Slowly, her web of light spread out, connecting her to everything. Aingeal felt so clearly how the world could unfold. Dimitri had retreated behind her, but still she felt him, knew that with the slightest nudge he could either succumb to vampirism or claim his lifemate. Farther away, she sensed Gregori and his path. Parasites had sought to destroy his children and nearly had, along with his lifemate.

Aingeal's powers were truly ambivalent. She witnessed all of life and felt what was needed to sway their destinies in any direction she chose. Still, she felt no reason to act.

Her brow darkened. Something was terribly wrong with her. She loved these people, could not sit by as they were destroyed. Aingeal waved a hand to set a wall of pure energy, keeping the Carpathians outside should they break from their enthrallment. She turned to enter the cave Skyler had already run into.

Aingeal walked as if in a dream, knowing what lay ahead. She had seen it only seconds before in the throws of her power. Aingeal paused as she saw Skyler in Dimitri's arms, pale. Aingeal tilted her head in a confused gesture, trying to focus on what was before her. A glimmer swirled around her friend and herself, temporarily switching their appearances.

"Why is it that you feed from another, lifemate?" Aingeal asked Dimitri. She could not force her voice from the horrible neutral timber the use of her power gave her.

Dimitri paused, confused. Clearly Skyler had managed to inject a few of the anti-parasites in his blood. Dimitri was coming back to himself, but not fast enough to save the lifemate in his arms.

"Come to me." Aingeal commanded. "I offer freely my life for yours."

Dimitri placed Skyler gently on the ground, stepping forward to Aingeal. The moment his teeth sank into her wrist, Aingeal felt Dominic pushing through her barrier. Hurriedly, she fabricated the anti-parasites thousands at a time, sending them pouring into Dimitri along with her blood.

Dominic was there then, throwing Dimitri away from her. Aingeal's eyes followed Dimitri's arc as he crashed into the cave wall. It was barely a second before he was on his feet again, crouching low over Skyler. He urged her to take his blood, speaking the ritual words to bind her to him, to life. Aingeal felt the ripple as the future shifted. Skyler and her lifemate would have troubles ahead, but they would be together.

After the fraction of a second it took Aingeal to absorb the sight, she shifted her gaze back to Dominic. His eyes were glowing bright green as the dragon inside of him reigned supreme. Aingeal still felt very distant, studying him from afar. His dragon gave him resistance to her powers, and it felt right that it should be so. Just then, her raw uncovered nature demanded that he prove why he was her lifemate.

"Take me from here." Aingeal said in her unnatural timber. "Gabriel and Lucian cannot help with Skyler's conversion unless I am far from her."

Already Skyler was contorting with pain, the glimmer faded from them both.

Dominic did not hesitate, crushing her to him as he flew from the cave. The sun set as they traveled. Neither spoke, Aingeal passive in Dominic's grip though it was hard enough to bruise. The long journey seemed to take only moments, and soon they were streaking through Dominic's house to the chamber below.

He tossed Aingeal on the bed while he stayed in the shadows. "You have placed yourself in great danger this day, lifemate."

His anger was draining as she lay safe in his home, revealing his stark fear for her. His heart pounded fiercely and crimson beads dotted his skin. Dominic was compelled forward to her, feeling her need of him now that the dragon was subsiding.

"What is wrong, love?" His tone was soft.

Dominic's heart wrenched as Aingeal lay completely unresponsive on the bed. Merging his mind fully with hers, Dominic felt the numb shock inside of Aingeal. Connecting with the other Carpathians had hurt her spirit even as it had strengthened her power. The raw and unfamiliar energy running through her kept her emotions at bay, but underneath lay a seething cauldron of self loathing.

Dominic tended to her, removing the gasoline tainted clothing and making sure all traces of the liquid were removed from her skin. Aingeal's eyes were riveted on his face as he clothed her in one of his shirts. He looked so caring that she wanted to reach out and touch him, but she was trapped in her own body. Aingeal closed her eyes as tears pricked at them.

Dominic turned away from her to crush healing herbs into the bowl of water. With a soft cloth, he began to clean the wound on her thigh. Silent tears streamed down her face as he worked.

_I am sorry, _ainaak enyem, _I know this is painful._

_It's not that. I feel so… _A flood of renewed emotions struck at Aingeal, stealing her words.

_Breathe. It is alright. I am here. _Dominic surrounded her with comfort as he closed her scratch with his tongue. Gently, he sank onto the bed beside her, pulling her into the shelter of his body.

Aingeal breathed raggedly into the cloth covering his chest. "I almost killed Skyler and Dimitri, Dominic, and I sent Crina to face the vampires. Gregori sits alone as his lifemate tries to recover from the parasites _I _infected her with." Aingeal hid her face against him, unable to voice her question aloud. _Am I a horrible person? _

Dominic pulled her away from him so he could gaze upon her face. It felt as if her tears were drops of acid burning holes in his heart.

Dominic brushed kisses across her closed eyelids. _Look at me, love. _

Aingeal sorrowfully opened her eyes, thinking to see an unbearable condemnation on his face.

_You have been ill-used. Yet, it was your compassionate nature that saved Skyler and Dimitri. _When Aingeal would have turned her face away, Dominic held her head between his hands. _Do not confuse yourself with your tormentors. It is they who strike against our people, and Crina who chooses to face them. You hold no responsibility toward her, only your lifemate and yourself whom you protected by giving her the information she sought. You have no need of the shame I feel inside of you._

The chaos in Aingeal stilled, her silvery glow vanishing as the fate inside of her recognized its mate. Dominic laughed then, his bass rumble shaking Aingeal.

_What's so funny? _She asked, an answering smile on her face.

Dominic dropped his face to her neck, inhaling her scent as his hand stroked her silky hair. _I believe you to be the most complicated lifemate ever found. I must win over each part of you. Carpathian, Fate, I believe the only aspect of you left for me to assuage is the human one._

Aingeal laughed then too, the sound doing much to soothe Dominic. _How do you plan to do that, lifemate?_

_I have ways. Mysterious, ancient ways a fledgling like you would know nothing of without my tutelage. _Dominic moved his mouth lower, pushing aside the collar of the shirt she wore. He brushed his lips in a caress over the dragon tattoo he had marked her with.

Aingeal slipped her hand inside his shirt, pushing his pants lower so she could trace his mark. _Your ways do not seem all that mysterious to me, though I admit you are the only one who can make me feel this way._

She sighed playfully. _Still, I do not believe sex is a strictly human pastime._

_What would you rather do, love? Go on a date? _He framed the question sarcastically.

Aingeal smiled mischievously. _I think that's the smartest idea you've come up with yet, and you are a very intelligent man._

_The flattery is appreciated, _ainaak enyem. _However… _He had intended to tell her that he was no modern male to play at love in a bar. Her face fell at that moment, though, giving him pause. _If it is important to you, we will attempt this thing._

_Gregori. I can't believe I forgot. _She looked horrified with herself. _I must aid Gregori and Savannah._

Dominic growled at the mention of another male, nipping the soft flesh beneath her collarbone. _Aingeal. I have need of you this night. Gregori is a great healer and will look to the care of his lifemate as I must._

Dominic flooded her with the fear he had faced that day, a very new and unsettling emotion. He could feel her body relax beneath his as she relented. A twinge of guilt stabbed at his heart, but he buried it deep within himself. He sagged against her, collecting himself before standing.

Aingeal frowned as he held his hand out to her. "What are you doing?" She asked.

"I am taking my lifemate on a _date_." Dominic managed to make the word sound remarkably like leprosy.

"Don't sound so grim." She laughed. "It'll be fun, I swear."

"Where exactly do you have in mind for our outing?" Dominic asked warily, feeling like a fledgling on his first flight for all the good his tremendous knowledge did him in this situation.

"I think it should be a surprise." Aingeal stated.

This was too much for Dominic. He stole into her mind to unearth her secret.

He raised one elegant brow. "A Goth bar, you're very funny, love."

Aingeal laughed as Dominic pulled her into him. "A band I know is performing there. I usually play a set or two with them, but I had to leave suddenly the last time the society was close. I left my flute." She shrugged. "It will still be fun."

"And what will we be wearing?" Dominic asked.

Aingeal stepped forward, unbuttoning the top and bottom of his untucked shirt. She mussed his short hair a bit. "You look presentable."

Dominic caressed the back of her bare thighs. "Are you planning on going like this then, love?"

Aingeal bit her lip as if she were considering it before clothing herself in a black corset top and low riding pants. Dominic's eyes lingered on the dragon mark, tracing the tail that curled below her top. Aingeal reached forward, putting her hand in his pocket and pulling back the fabric of his shirt to reveal his matching tattoo. She liked feeling so connected to him.

Aingeal shimmered them from the chamber into a backroom of the club. Cello cases were laying about, suggesting the band was already out among the crowd. Aingeal smiled as she heard Melora's voice from the main room. Dominic put a hand on the small of her back, guiding her through the door.

Small tables sat in the corners of the large room, lit only by candles. Dressed in Victorian era garb, the band sat in the center of the room. The sound of cellos wove through the singer's haunting voice. Dominic used his body to press Aingeal's smaller frame toward a table. A waitress immediately came forward to take their order.

"Red wine, please." Aingeal told the girl wearing the short red dress.

The waitress turned to Dominic. "Would you like something?"

Dominic smiled. The girl had no idea what she had inadvertently offered. "No, thank you."

Aingeal elbowed him in the stomach as soon as the other woman walked away to get her drink. "There will be no nibbling on the cute waitress."

_Are you jealous. _Dominic crowded her, his body hiding hers from sight as he dropped his mouth to her neck. _I assure you, you are the only one I want to nibble._

_I can feel how hungry you are, Dominic. Let me feed you. _Aingeal held Dominic's head to her throat, turning her face to brush kisses across his jaw.

Aingeal's senses went on high alert as his teeth sank deep. Her pulse sped to match the rhythm of the drums as the music washed through her. All of it felt so good, the music thrumming inside of her, her blood pounding faster into Dominic's eager mouth. Aingeal crumpled the front of his shirt in her hands to hold him closer, uncaring as the waitress hurried away after placing her drink on the table.

Dominic only stopped when he felt her head loll back. Her taste was so light and inviting, he had a hard time closing the pinpricks on her neck. His head snapped up, though, as the music stopped and a small female flounced down next to Aingeal.

"I think you two just stole the show. The rest of the club can't keep their eyes to themselves."

Aingeal blushed at the feel of the gazes on them. Of course, not one human there had any idea what really happened in the booth.

"Melora!" Dominic could hear the wealth of affection in Aingeal's voice as she embraced the woman.

"God, girl." Melora squeezed Aingeal close. "The last time I remember seeing you, we were in New York making plans to go to a movie. Now I find you in some random bar in Romania?" She pulled back to look at Aingeal worriedly. "After you didn't show, I went to your apartment, and the place was trashed. What the hell happened?"

Aingeal was startled. "You went to my apartment! What were you thinking? I told you I might have to leave one day, not to come looking for me. You could have been seriously hurt if the psychos who went through my place were still there when you came in."

Dominic dropped his arm around Aingeal's shoulder as fear clawed at her throat, making her want to scream at her friend for being so careless.

Melora shrugged, backing off as she realized Aingeal would not elaborate on her reasons for departing. "Nothing happened." Her gaze jumped to Dominic. "So who's this?"

_Crap! What do I tell her? _Aingeal asked quickly.

_That I am your incredibly sexy husband whose bed you cannot bear to be away from. _Dominic replied in as teasing a tone as he could manage with his body making demands on him. Her blood had only assuaged one of his hungers, driving him crazy in other ways.

_Patience, lifemate, and do notice I said _lifemate _instead of _husband _as we are not married by human standards._

"This is Dominic." Aingeal stated simply, unable to come up with an adequate way to describe their relationship.

The singer/cellist extended her hand to him. "I'm Melora."

"It is a pleasure to meet one Aingeal regards so highly." Dominic's hand was large, but Melora's long fingers kept her hand from being completely engulfed by his.

"So, when is the date for the wedding?" Melora asked blatantly. "Because I warn you, I'm inviting myself."

"Mel!" Aingeal said, trying to reprimand Melora though she could not stop smiling at her friend's astuteness. She had forgotten how easy it was to be around the musician.

"I have not yet asked Aingeal to marry me." Dominic answered.

"You need to jump on it, man." Melora proceeded to spill all of Aingeal's secret thoughts on marriage, thoughts she had hidden even from herself. "She's crazy about everything Irish. So, you should definitely get her a claddagh engagement ring and do the whole hand fasting thing for the wedding."

Dominic could see the truth of her statements in Aingeal's mind. "Thank you for telling me this. I will keep it in mind if I happen to be out shopping for a certain piece of jewelry."

Melora appeared pleased that he had taken to heart what she said. "Well, my break is over. Are you going to come play with us, Aingeal?"

"I can't." Aingeal looked extremely forlorn as she admitted it quietly.

"Really? Unless your fingers are broken, I can't see why. I've been taking your flute with me on the off chance that we ran into each other again." Melora smiled brightly. "Did I forget to mention that?"

Aingeal jumped up. "Are you serious? Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Dominic smiled as he followed the two giddy women to the back. He could not believe the joy his lifemate had brought him in so short a time.


End file.
